A Mess of her Own Making
by Melbones
Summary: Nina goes to Baltimore and then the unthinkable happens which leads her straight home. How will her family cope with this new development in Nina's life, how will Nina cope.
1. Chapter 1

**A Mess of her Own Making**

**Author's note: For all fans of Nina and Patrick, sadly he doesn't exist in this story.. as this story deals with the fall out from Nina sleeping with Mick. It doesn't exactly go the same way as it did on the show. I know it sounds crazy.. but I've always felt Nina and Mick would actually make a great couple, and if it weren't for Billie... it would have happened years ago.**

**The story begins with Nina in Baltimore, shortly after her arrival. Enjoy.**

She'd been in Baltimore for two weeks, and was enjoying the time away from her families dramas. Despite missing them terribly, she knew she needed this time away in order to be able to allow the events of the last month to settle down, and if she was truly honest with herself she needed to get away from Chris. She knew there was no way she was going to be able to handle watching him get back together with his wife, which is where she was certain they were headed.

She wasn't sure if it was the frenetic pace of the work at John Hopkins, or the strain of the last few weeks, but she was finding it hard to bounce back from the exhaustion she had experienced before she left for Baltimore. It wasn't as though she felt sick, she just felt tired all the time and would collapse into bed after her shifts at the hospital every night, sometimes without even eating dinner.

It wasn't until her third week away that she began to feel sick, the nausea coming on at all times of the day not always causing her to be physically sick, but often. After the third straight day of this, she had to admit that there was something wrong and approached one of her new colleagues Miranda for advice, she had her own suspicions being an obstetrician, but needed someone else to suspect also before she'd believe what her body was telling her.

"Miranda, can I talk to you?" Nina asked her colleague, not sure how to broach this subject with someone she barely knew. A vision of her sister and her reaction to the possible news suddenly hit her and tears formed in her eyes as she thought of hurting her sister again.

"Of course Nina, do we need privacy?" Miranda asked, looking over at her new colleague who was beginning to be come a good friend and noticed the tears in her eyes, she quickly ushered her to one of the unused examination rooms and closed the door locking it behind them.

"Nina, what's wrong?" Miranda asked concerned for her new friend, who seemed lost in thought as she stared into space in front of her.

"Nina" she asked again, shaking her gently to get her attention.

"Oh sorry Miranda, I- er I don't really know how to say this" Nina told her now as she thought of her symptoms and allowed her doctor brain to take over.

"The easiest way is to just say it Nina, I'm sure it won't be as bad as you think" Miranda told her, rubbing her shoulder gently. She really liked Nina, had noticed she did tend to get lost in her own world at times, but she was a very talented doctor and she had a way with pregnant women that showed she was definitely in the right profession.

"Okay - okay, I - I think I might be pregnant" Nina said and promptly burst into tears as she made the confession. All she could see in her mind was how much this was going to hurt her sister.

"Okay Nina, it's going to be okay, let's think about this rationally for a moment, let's go through your symptoms, then we'll do a test and find out, it's going to be okay" Miranda said as she rubbed Nina's shoulder soothingly not knowing whether to hug the woman or not. She was still getting to know her, but she could tell that this situation was upsetting Nina, and she wanted to help in any way that she could.

"I've been tired more than normal, which I put down to the change of pace at this hospital and my family problems before I came here, and for the last few days I've been feeling sick to my stomach often throughout the day, my sensitivity to smell is higher and this morning my breasts were a little sore, oh and I'm pretty sure I'm late" Nina told her colleague tears welling in her eyes again as she heard herself say the symptoms she had been experiencing out loud. The doctor in her knew that the chances of her being pregnant were quite high.

"Okay I think our next step is to do a blood test, just wait here for a moment while I go get the equipment, and we should do a standard pregnancy test also, as it will take at least a day for the blood test results to come back" Miranda said, taking charge of the situation, having a pretty strong feeling what the results would be.

Once Miranda left the room, Nina was left alone with her thoughts and her imagination. Flashes of the night with Mick came to her, making her feel sick to her stomach for the fifth time that day. One night, one disastrous mistake that could ruin her relationship completely with her sister, if the results of this test came back positive.

Her mind filled with scenarios of how things would be if she was pregnant and by the time Miranda returned she was having a full on panic attack. She tried desperately to calm her breathing down and was grateful when Miranda handed her a paper bag so she could try and calm herself down.

"I think we should do the standard pregnancy test first and then the blood test, so how about you take this, now that your calm and I'll see you in a few minutes" Miranda told her, instinctively knowing she needed calm instruction right now. She watched Nina walk into the bathroom shakily and wondered if there was more to this situation than she realised.

Nina came out a few minutes later with the pregnancy test in hand and they sat and waited the couple of minutes for the test to take effect. Miranda looked at the result first and then sighed not sure if Nina could cope with the answer.

"You're pregnant Nina, that's a very strong positive right there" Miranda said taking Nina's hand as she burst into tears again.

"We'll do a blood test to confirm and I'll see if I can get some ultrasound equipment so we can work out how far along you are, but with a result like that and your symptoms I'm pretty confident you are pregnant" Miranda told her, waiting for her to calm down and accept the news.

"Oh God, I suspected but I didn't really, oh my God what am I going to do?" Nina asked as her worst fears came into realisation, she was pregnant with Mick's baby.

"Let's just get through these tests and then we can talk about your options" Miranda said getting into doctor mode, knowing that Nina needed that right now.

"Okay – okay" Nina said still in shock.

Half an hour later they were in front of an ultrasound screen, Nina was lying on the bed with her shirt up and Miranda was gently spreading the gel over Nina's abdomen, she began probing Nina's abdomen with the ultrasound wand and smiled when she located a small embryo in Nina's slightly enlarged uterus, a noise began filtering over the machine, and she looked over at Nina to see tears in her eyes, and knew no matter what was going Nina would be keeping this baby.

"That's the heart beat, which I'm sure you know, you are measuring at roughly 5-6 weeks which seems consistent with your symptoms, you may not feel this way but congratulations Nina, you're definitely pregnant" Miranda told her and expected Nina to burst into tears again but only saw quiet resignation on her face.

"Thank you Miranda, you've been a great help" Nina said as she wiped the gel off her stomach and got up off the bed. She swayed a little as she got up, but kept her footing. She realised she needed to tell someone, and then she needed to work out what she was going to do, whether she should stay in Baltimore or go home. Home, she really wanted to go home, to be with her Mum and her family, but would they really help her if they knew it was Mick's kid?

"Can I ask who the father is? It can't be anyone from here, you've not been here long enough" Miranda said, not sure if she should ask, but had a feeling Nina needed to get this off her chest.

"He's my sister's partner, they broke up and I was having problems with the guy I liked and we both got drunk and well you know what happened next, we used protection but it must have failed, oh God I don't know what I'm going to do, this is going to hurt my sister so much" Nina said thinking of Billie and knowing that she'd only just forgiven her for sleeping with Mick and now this had happened.

"Does she know you slept with him?" Miranda asked wondering if that was the family problems Nina had been escaping when she came here.

"Yes she does, and she's just forgiven me for it and now, oh God she's going to hate me" Nina said as tears formed in her eyes again.

"I'm sure she won't hate you Nina, and to be fair to you, you didn't do anything wrong when you slept with her partner if they weren't together at the time, I mean probably not the best choice, but we all do stupid things when we are drunk" Miranda said, not sure if she was helping the situation at all.

"Yes but I'm going to have to live with this stupid thing for the rest of my life, have a constant reminder that I fucked up" Nina said becoming angry with herself for not ensuring that the condoms worked, for not being on the pill at the time even though she'd been pursuing a relationship with Chris.

"Do you know what you are going to do? Are you going to keep the baby?" Miranda asked, already knowing the answer but needing to ask the question for Nina's sake, she needed to know that it was okay not to keep the baby if she couldn't handle it.

"I could never imagine having an abortion, so I'll be keeping the baby, I just don't know if I should stay here or go back home, my family deserve to know, and I can't hide this from Billie forever, she's going to want to Skype with me and she knows me very well, she'd be able to guess I'm sure of it" Nina said, already knowing what she was going to do but not knowing how to go about it. Of course she was going to go home and face the music. No matter how much this was going to hurt people, Billie deserved to know, and Mick deserved to know he was going to become a father.

"Well take a few days to make up your mind, I won't say anything to anyone in the mean time, but maybe you should go home for the day, take a nice relaxing bath and just clear your head for the moment, you've had a lot to take in and you're beginning to look a little pale" Miranda said just as the paleness on Nina's face turned a little green. She smiled as Nina rushed into the bathroom to empty her stomach contents thinking about the situation Nina was in. She knew Nina was going to be a great mum, she could see it in her when she interacted with the babies, but what a mess she was in, she hoped that her family would support her through this, because she was going to need it.

A few days later Nina was on a plane back to Australia, equipped with maxalon for the nausea and a isle seat in case the medicine failed. The trip was long and draining and she hadn't told anyone she was coming home so she knew she'd have to take a cab home from the airport. She wondered if Billie would be living at Mick's place now or if she was still staying at her apartment. She hoped she'd be staying at Mick's, she didn't know if she'd be able to handle seeing her tonight.

Once the plane landed she got the first cab she could home and was happy to find she was alone when she got there. She collapsed into bed and fell asleep straight away not even bothering to change out of her clothes.

She awoke to movement in her house and got up to investigate and came face to face with her sister who screamed not realising that Nina had been in the house.

"Nina, what are you doing home? I thought you were in Baltimore for another 5 months!" Billie asked as she took her into a hug. It took everything she had not to burst into tears at the sight of her sister.

"Something came up and I had to come home, I'm sorry I didn't call it was a last minute thing" Nina said and ushered for them to sit down. She was feeling a little nauseous and the last thing she wanted was to get sick in front of her sister.

"Are you okay Neens? You look a little pale" Billie asked concerned for her sister but ultimately more interested in why she was home. Had Chris called and told her he wanted to give it a shot, she hoped not, because she had decided that Chris was not good enough for her Neens.

"Yeah I think I'm just jet lagged, it's a long flight from Baltimore" Nina said hoping she'd be able to get through this conversation with out blurting out the news of her pregnancy to her sister.

"You should sleep some more, I'll make you some of your eggs that you like and a milky coffee" Billie said thinking food would make Nina feel a bit better and more refreshed.

"No coffee, it will only keep me awake" Nina said quickly, not wanting to give the real reason she didn't want to drink coffee. Being an obstetrician she was well aware of the restrictions that were now going to be placed on her diet.

"Okay, tea then and eggs?" Billie asked as she got up to put the kettle on.

"Yes thank you, that would be wonderful" Nina said feeling guilty knowing that Billie would not be willing to do this if she knew that she was pregnant with Mick's kid.

"So why did you come home so soon what was this thing that came up?" Billie asked watching her sister and seeing her grow even paler at the question. Something was definitely up with Nina she decided and she wasn't quite sure what it was.

"Can I talk to you about it later? I'm not really up for hashing over the whole thing right now" Nina said hoping that Billie would leave it at that. She was beginning to feel nauseous again and this time felt like it was going to culminate in a mad dash to the toilet. She tried to breath through her nose and out her mouth to counteract the nausea but it wasn't working. Eventually she had to succumb to it and made the mad dash to the toilet hoping Billie wouldn't work out what was happening.

"Neens, where are you, oh God Neens you poor thing are you okay?" Billie asked as she heard the sounds of Nina retching into the toilet. She wanted to go in there and help, but she really couldn't stand the sight of vomit and knew she'd end up beside Nina if she went in there.

When Nina came out Billie took one look at her and ushered her back to bed, sitting on the side worriedly brushing Nina's hair back from her face.

"Neens are you sick?" Billie asked worried about the answer, that would be a reason to come home, if Nina had found out she cancer or something. She could be sick from the cancer drugs, she'd watched enough movies to know it normally made you sick.

"Not that way Billie, really I just need some sleep right now can I talk to you about it a bit later?" Nina said as a wave of tiredness overcame her,

"Of course Neens, I'll be here when you wake up" Billie told her smiling as she watched sleep take hold of her sister. She walked out into the kitchen and turned off the kettle and put back the milk and eggs and went to call Mick and her parents to tell them Nina was home. Her sister was home and she couldn't be happier.

_Okay leaving it there, hoping it's a good start and not too many of you are throwing tomatoes at me! Next up Nina reveals her pregnancy to Billie and Mick... wonder what their reactions will be. Will Billie really be as angry as Nina thinks she will?_


	2. Chapter 2

**A Mess of Her Own Making**

**Chapter 2**

Nina awoke a few hours later to the sound of her sister bustling about the apartment cleaning up and packing things away. It made her feel incredibly guilty that she was carrying this secret and she knew she wouldn't be able to hold out long before she told Billie. She couldn't help imagining Billie throwing plates and other items after learning the truth of her condition. She was terrified this would end up with her losing Billie forever, but she knew her sister deserved the truth. However there was one person, who deserved the truth more. Mick.

She got up slowly hoping the nausea had passed for the day and was happy to find that it had. She dressed quietly, rehearsing in her head what she was going to say to Mick. It was stupid really, because she was pretty sure when she came face to face with Mick, her blurt reflex would kick in and she'd blurt it out. She found she couldn't imagine Mick's reaction to the news, despite him being a good friend to her during his relationship with Billie, she found that she didn't really know him and just couldn't guess what his reaction would be.

She walked out of the bedroom once she was dressed and stopped when she saw Billie cleaning in the kitchen. She just watched her for a moment, hoping against hope that somehow Billie would forgive her and not blame her for the situation she was currently in.

"There you are Neens, I thought you were going to sleep all day" Billie said as she noticed her sister's presence in the room. She gave her a once over and saw that she was still a little pale, and she looked nervous for some reason.

"I could have, jet lag always kills me, but I have somewhere I need to go, will you be here later?" Nina asked hoping she wasn't giving away any of what she was feeling at that moment. The urge to just rip the band-aid off and come clean with her sister was incredibly powerful, but she knew Mick deserved to hear the news first, and she could really do with his help in how to handle Billie in this mess.

"Yeah I should be, oh I called Mum and Dad and told them you were home, they were worried but they said we should come over for dinner later" Billie told Nina, seeing her face pale even more and became worried Nina was going to be sick again.

"Are you okay Neens, you look like you are going to puke, if you are please take it to the bathroom, you know what I'm like around puke" Billie said her worry for her sister becoming stronger as Nina rushed off to the bathroom and the unmistakable sounds of Nina being sick could be heard.

Nina walked out a few moment later feeling shaky, but infinitely better than she had. She tried not to look at Billie as she gathered up her bag and her phone and made to walk out the door.

"Neens, what's going on, why won't you talk to me?" Billie asked, wracking her brain trying to figure out what could be wrong with Nina.

"I have to go Billie, I'll talk to you later" Nina said as she walked out of the apartment, leaving her sister standing dumbstruck by her hasty exit. Something was definitely wrong with Nina and she was going to do everything she could to find out what that was. As soon as she was sure Nina would be down the bottom of the stairs she quickly grabbed her keys, the decision to follow Nina to wherever she was going made in an instant.

Nina picked up her hands free as soon as she got in the car and dialled Mick's number, taking off as quickly as she could in the hopes of thwarting her sister's attempt to follow her. She knew her sister very well and knew that she'd piqued her curiosity about what could be wrong with her. She knew she had very little time to lose Billie and prevent her from knowing who she was meeting up with.

"Hey Neens, Billie told me you were home, how are you?" Mick said as he answered his phone. He'd always liked Nina, and after their little tryst, he'd done everything he could to forget everything that had happened that night so that he could continue to see Nina as a friend only, he couldn't bear to have been the person who drove the two sisters apart.

"I'm good, can we meet somewhere and talk, it's pretty urgent and it needs to be somewhere Billie is unlikely to find us" Nina said, knowing she sounded a little paranoid, but she really wanted a chance to sit down and tell Billie about the baby in a calm setting, in the hopes that the plate throwing scene she'd imagined wouldn't eventuate.

"Sure, is everything ok?" Mick asked concerned, he was very curious as to why Nina had come home early from Baltimore, and hoped it had just been because she was very home sick, but from Nina's tone it seemed there was much more to it.

"Yes, I just really need to talk to you" Nina said, hoping she didn't sound too desperate, her stomach was roiling and she needed to get to her destination as soon as she could in the hopes of finding something that might calm it down.

"Okay then, well you know that cafe we went to when I wasn't with Billie, she's never been there so it should be safe, I'll meet you there in ten?" Mick asked feeling more worried as he heard the urgency in her voice. He had no idea what was going on here, but he had a feeling it wasn't good and knew the best thing to do was just find out what Nina needed to tell him and then deal with it.

"Great, see you then" Nina said as she ended the call and pulled over as her roiling stomach got the better of her again. She knew she needed to eat something, despite not even being able to imagine eating anything at the moment, but she knew if she did, it would make her feel better.

She walked into the cafe fifteen minutes later and met Mick's concerned eyes straight away. She walked over to the table he'd gotten for them and tried not to collapse into the chair. She was exhausted and still shaky from her bouts of morning sickness.

"Neens, you look terrible are you okay, do you want me to order you some tea?" Mick asked, as his concern for Nina rocketed up a few more notches. He hoped that Nina didn't need to talk to him to help her break the news to Billie that she had cancer or something. He took in the paleness of her face and her clammy looking skin and could tell she'd been sick recently.

"Yes thank you Mick, and a piece of toast with no condiments would be great too" Nina said, too exhausted to order herself. She needed a moment to collect herself and think about how she was going to break this news to him. She looked at him and smiled, he was everything she could ever wish for her sister, kind, generous, good looking, funny and talented. She hoped that what she had to reveal to him wouldn't destroy his relationship with Billie, because she knew that she couldn't bear to hurt Billie in that way.

She was relieved when her toast and tea was delivered promptly and she took a ginger bite of the toast, knowing she needed to eat the toast slowly or it would just trigger her gag reflex. She slowly took a sip of her tea to wash the toast down and felt a little bit better and so ate another bite before she looked up at Mick and knew she needed to get this over with.

"Mick thank you, I- I need to tell you something and I need you to know that it's not your problem it's mine" Nina started off, wanting him to know that although she had a feeling he'd want to be involved, if he didn't want to be, that would be okay too.

"Nina, what is it, you have my mind spinning at the moment" Mick asked watching a thousand emotions race across Nina's face. Part of him wanted to take her hand to reassure her, but he didn't think it was appropriate given their history and that Billie was still only beginning to trust him again.

"I don't know how to say this Mick so I'm just going to say it, I'm pregnant and the baby is yours" Nina said, holding her breath as she waited for his reaction.

"Oh god, are you sure?" Mick asked and then kicked himself, of course she was sure, she delivered babies for a living, she knew the signs better than anyone.

"Yes Mick, I've had an ultrasound and blood tests, I'm definitely pregnant, and I haven't slept with anyone else in quite a long time so you are the only candidate" Nina said, tears forming in her eyes as she braced herself for the rest of his reaction.

"Wow, this is a lot to take in, have you told Billie?" Mick asked, and saw the guilt on Nina's face and knew the answer straight away. He was going to be a father, he'd knocked up his girlfriend's sister. Everything he had thought he could have with Billie was gone in that moment he felt, there was no way she was going to forgive him for this, and Nina, she was having his baby. He looked down at her still flat stomach, trying to imagine her further along in the pregnancy and the thought made him want to smile. No matter the pain this was going to cause, she was going to look beautiful.

"No, I was going to tell her this afternoon after I talked to you, I wanted you to be pre-warned when she comes after your blood after she's through with me" Nina joked trying to lighten the atmosphere a little. She knew that he might need some time to process this, but a part of her wanted to know how he felt about the baby itself, would he want to be involved, would she be doing this alone.

"No matter the fall out with Billie, Nina – I'm not going to let you do this alone, we both made a mistake and it resulted in a baby, if you want to keep the baby, I'll support you in whatever way you want me to" Mick told her, finally giving into the desire to take her hand, he wanted her to know she wasn't going through this alone. He hoped that by some miracle Billie would come around and support Nina through this too, but no matter what he would not let her carry his child and give birth alone.

"Thank you Mick, and just so we are clear, I do want to keep the baby, I'm sorry I know it would probably be easier for us all if I didn't but I just can't abort a child, I can support this baby financially, so there is no reason for me to either abort or give the baby up for adoption" Nina said a little fiercely wanting to make it very clear to him that the baby was already a part of her, and it wasn't the baby's fault they'd spent a drunken night together.

"Nina that's fine, as I said I'll support whatever decision you made, I'll even come with you to tell Billie, in this pregnancy, we are in this together" Mick said as he squeezed her hand gently and then let go, his hand tingling a little as he placed it back in his lap.

"Thanks Mick, but I think it would be easier for Billie to take if it was just me, but I'll keep my phone with me should she get unruly and I need your help" Nina said as she finished off her toast and the mug of tea, she was feeling a little better about things and the pregnancy didn't feel as daunting now that she knew he was going to be there through most of it.

"So that's why you are sick? Is there something you can take for it?" Mick asked worriedly, he knew pregnant women generally suffered from morning sickness in the first couple of months of pregnancy but was not prepared for how drained Nina looked.

"Yes, and yes I can I just haven't had a chance to go to the hospital to get anything yet, I think after telling Billie I'm going to need a few days of sleep" Nina joked a little, and smiled at Mick feeling more positive about the pregnancy than she had since she learned of it.

"Well I'll do my best to help with Billie, and if you are feeling like crap you can call me, I'll come around and help in whatever way I can" Mick told her looking deeply into her eyes so she could see how serious he was. It wasn't the ideal situation, but he was partly responsible for her condition and he was going to be as supportive as she'd allow him to be. He tried to imagine himself as a father, but found he still couldn't get his head around it.

"Well I should go, the sooner I tell Billie the sooner it will get around to the family, and then that part will be over and I can get to dealing with the fallout" Nina said as she stood up taking care not to stand up too quickly, despite the toast she'd eaten she was still feeling a little shaky and knew her blood sugar was probably a little low. She needed to make time to go into the hospital and get a script for something that would help with the nausea. She also needed to start looking for an obstetrician and book in another ultrasound. She knew that at six weeks, she still had a chance of losing the baby, but she was going to do all she could to ensure that she carried this baby to term.

"Okay, but if she gets too much to handle call me, you shouldn't be the only one she yells at" Mick said as he watched her walk out of the cafe, the nod of her head letting him know she'd heard and agreed. He sat there, still shocked by what he'd learned, thoughts racing through his head. He decided he'd stick close by to Nina's place, so he could get there quickly if Nina needed him.

Nina walked in the door to find her sister watching television on the lounge and set her shoulders knowing she needed to get this over with as quickly as she could.

"Neens, I'm glad you are back, I've been thinking about you coming home early and being sick, please tell me you don't have cancer" Billie said holding her breath waiting for Nina's answer. She'd tried following Nina to wherever she'd been going but had lost her within a few minutes, she'd never been much good at following people. She'd spent the rest of the time waiting for Nina to come home trying to distract herself with television, and not thinking of the possible reasons Nina could have come home early.

"Billie I don't have cancer, but there is something I should tell you" Nina said as she looked down at her feet, not knowing how she was going to say these words.

"Oh god you're pregnant, that's it isn't it, oh Neen's what are you going to do? Are you going to tell Chris?" Billie said as all of Nina's symptoms clicked into place and she saw the confirmation on Nina's face.

"Yes I am pregnant, but Billie, Chris isn't the father" Nina said as tears formed in her eyes as she wondered just how she was going to spit the next words out.

"Who is then?" Billie asked, as she watched her sister look at her shoes again and knew that this wasn't going to be good.

"I'm so sorry Billie, Mick is the father" Nina said and then burst into tears as her fears of losing her sister overcame her. She looked at Billie through her tears and could see her sister had been shocked into silence and that made her cry even more.

"God Billie, I wish it wasn't true, I'm so sorry I never wanted to hurt you" Nina said trying to calm herself down knowing if she allowed herself to get too upset it wouldn't be good for the baby.

"I- I don't know what to say, I don't know how to react to this Neens – I have to go" Billie said as she gathered up her stuff and walked out of the door leaving a Nina to dissolve into a heap of tears.

She walked out of Nina's apartment and contemplated calling Mick, but knew she'd only get angry and yell at him if she did. She was angry and she was hurt, but she knew deep inside her heart that neither of them had meant for this to happen, Nina had even confessed to her that they had used protection.

She was torn, between wanting to support her sister, knowing that if she was in the same boat, Nina would support her, no matter how much it hurt; and wanting nothing to do with both of them. She had no idea how to react to this, and knew she was going to need some time to get over this and work out just how she felt about it.

Mick was standing at the bottom of the stair well as Billie burst out of the doors desperately needing fresh air and space so she could try and process this news.

"Billie, God I didn't think I'd run into you, I just wanted to be here just in case, I mean Nina's really sick and I didn't know how you'd react to this, and I just wanted to be on hand in case things got -" Mick said as he trailed off not wanting to say he was worried that Billie would be angry at Nina and that world war three might occur in Nina's apartment.

"I- I have to get some air, I don't know what to say to Neens, I don't know what to say to you, I just need some space, can you just give me some space, tell Neens I'll be back and tell her, tell her that I'm not going to yell at her, and that no matter what, she's my sister and I'll be here for her" Billie said wanting so badly to yell at Mick for how stupid he'd been, and how stupid Nina had been, but she just couldn't. Her sister was having a baby and no matter how it had happened, she wouldn't let her go through this alone. She just needed to process this, and get her head straight about it.

"Okay Billie, whatever you need, I love you and for what it's worth I'm sorry, Neens and I, we never meant for this to happen" Mick said, wanting to take her into his arms and hold her and tell her that everything was going to be okay. He stepped towards her but she put her hands up, silently telling him to back off.

"Just give me time Mick, I just need time" Billie said as she walked away from him, tears beginning to fall as the situation sunk in fully. How were they going to get through this, what was going to happen from here. She realised she hadn't even asked Nina if she was going to keep the baby, but a big part of her knew her sister so well, that she knew that getting rid of the baby would not be an option for Nina. She got into her car and looked up to see that Mick was still standing there watching her, she indicated with her head that he should go upstairs, this baby was partly his responsibility too and if she couldn't be there for Nina right now, she wanted him to be.

She watched as he finally comprehended her meaning and entered Nina's building, before starting the car and driving off, to where she didn't know but she knew she'd find somewhere eventually, that she could sit and think and allow the situation they were in to sink in.

_Leaving it there, so much more I could do with this chapter, but I really want the next chapter to be about Billie's return to Nina, her decision on how she is going to handle this, and Mick comforting Nina. Then onto telling Geraldine and Darcy. FYI as per cannon Jimmy is overseas for this part of the fic, but he will come back at some stage, some things that happened in the show will still happen as part of this story. Thanks for reading... Mel_


	3. Chapter 3

**A Mess of her Own Making**

**Chapter 3**

Mick entered the house to find Nina asleep on the lounge having cried herself to sleep. He watched her sleep for a few minutes his eyes straying to her stomach quite often still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that a baby resided inside her.

His thoughts strayed to Billie and he wondered where she would go, who she would turn to. He felt helpless to be able to help either Billie or Nina. He loved Billie, of that he was certain and he would do all he could to make this up to her and keep their relationship solid, but he now felt a stronger pull towards Nina, whether it was because she was carrying his child, or the responsibility he felt for her well being. It was as he was thinking this that he realised he hadn't even asked Nina how far along she was, or whether she'd been able to get a picture of the baby from the ultrasound she'd mentioned.

He found that whilst he knew this baby could potentially destroy his relationship with the woman he loved, he could not wish for the baby to not exist, he realised that he was already committed to the baby, and to Nina in affect, and if the baby did in fact destroy his relationship with Billie, he'd be devastated but he would not ever turn back the clock.

His musing was interrupted by Nina beginning to stir on the couch, a slight groan coming from her and then he watch as she suddenly bolted into consciousness and rushed to the bathroom. He cringed as he heard her throwing up and wished there was something he could do for her. Maybe he could drive her to a doctor so she could get the pills she mentioned which would help her with the nausea.

He stood there with his arms crossed, not knowing what to do as Nina slowly walked back into the room and took her place back on the couch.

"I'm sorry Mick, you don't have to be here for this, you should go to Billie, don't worry about me I'll be fine" Nina said as she laid down again, the nausea was gone for the moment, but it was persisting and she knew she was going to need to do something about it soon.

"I'm where I should be Nina, Billie you know what she's like she needs some time, right now I'm concerned about you" Mick said, wanting to sit next to her on the couch and comfort her. He could see she was struggling not to fall apart, and that was what made him move. He gently walked up to her and sat down next to her.

"I know this is not ideal Neens, but I'm here, no matter what happens between Billie and I, I'm here so rest your head, sleep, the baby needs it" Mick said as he encouraged her to lay her head in his lap and gently stroked her head. Right now the lines between friends and anything else were blurred, and all he really wanted to do was provide her comfort.

"Thank you Mick, I -" Nina said and trailed off as her exhaustion caught up with her. The rhythmic stroking of her head lulled her to sleep quickly and Mick smiled as her face relaxed with sleep.

They continued the day like that, Mick encouraging Nina to sleep when she needed to and to eat when she felt like it. He wanted to take her a doctor to get the medication she needed, but wanted her to feel a bit more human first. Once she'd managed to eat a couple of pieces of plain toast and they didn't seem to be coming back he broached the subject with her.

"Neens, I was thinking now that you are feeling a bit better it might be a good idea to see a doctor, get some of the medication for the nausea you were talking about?" Mick asked Nina, not wanting to take over in this pregnancy but wanting to offer his help when he could.

"You're right Mick, I don't think I can go to the hospital just yet, I don't want people to know, can you look up a doctor whilst I go have a shower and freshen up a bit?" Nina asked, touched by how gentle and concerned Mick was being. It took all she had not to break down and cry again, thinking of how great a father he was going to be, and how she wished that it were Billie that was pregnant and not her, that this was happening in the right way. The only thing that felt right about this situation was the baby, she could not wish to turn back the clock, despite the fact that she'd only known of her pregnancy for a short time, she already loved the baby fiercely and would do all she could to protect it.

"No problems take all the time you need" Mick said as he got out his phone to look up a doctor they could see. He had no idea of the kind of doctor she'd want to see, whether she'd want to see a male or a female. He looked through and found one who had a kind smile and felt like he'd be the right guy for the job. He made a call and found he had an opening in an hour and made an appointment for Nina on her behalf.

He sat on Nina's couch watching TV quietly while he waited for her to come out of the bathroom. He wasn't really watching the TV, just thinking, of Billie, of Nina, of whether Geraldine or Darcy would kill him when they found out. He knew how disapproving Geraldine had been of Nina's one night stand with him, and that it had hurt Nina deeply, because Nina was just not the type of person to make these kinds of mistakes. God knows it was a mistake most people would expect out of Billie, and now her life was being thrown into more chaos, as that one night had changed her life and his forever.

Nina walked out of the bathroom and watched Mick for a moment, she could see how deep in thought he was and wondered what he was thinking, wondered if he was thinking of Billie, or the baby, of her. She shook her head knowing she had no right to be on the list of people he was thinking of. Despite it all she was looking forward to getting to know Mick a little better, he was going to a part of her life for the rest of her life now that there was a baby on the way, their lives would be intertwined forever, not just because he was the man her sister loved, but because he was this baby's father.

"Nina, you are looking a lot better" Mick commented as he quietly took her in, she looked more rested and calm, as though she had made peace with what had happened today and knew she needed to just get on with it. It was one of the things he admired most about her, she had that ability to do what needed to be done no matter if her world was shattering around her.

"I feel better, did you find a doctor?" Nina asked, realising it had been a long time since she'd needed to visit a GP. She didn't even have a regular GP she visited, normally opting for seeing someone affiliated with the hospital.

"Yes, he's got a kind face, I wasn't sure if you wanted to see a man or woman, his name is Dr Noonan, I hope that's okay?" Mick asked unsure of himself, she'd left the finding of the doctor to him, obviously trusting him to find one she'd like. He was gratified that she trusted him so much and he smiled at her as she tied up her hair.

"So long as he can give me the drugs that will help with this nausea, I don't care who he is, I'd prescribe them myself if it was allowed" Nina said as she grabbed her bag and waited for him to gather his thing so they could get on their way. The trip to the doctor was fairly short and they spent it in silence, both still too lost in their own heads to talk.

The wait for the doctor wasn't very long and as he walked out to greet them, Nina ushering them both into the doctor's waiting rooms.

"I'm sorry, but I have to ask you wouldn't be related to Geraldine Proudman would you?" Dr Noonan asked, giving in to the urge to ask, so he could get down to business and not be consumed by wondering if this was Geraldine's daughter or not.

"Er yes she's my mother" Nina answered, not sure where the doctor was going with this.

"I was your mother's GP for a while, I was trying to figure out why you looked so familiar and then I saw your name, forgive me for being rude, my curiousity got the better of me" Dr Noonan said as he took them both in wondering what they were here for. Both of them had looked very nervous when he'd called her name in the waiting room.

"That's okay, I tend to do that too" Nina said laughing a little as she tried to put the doctor at ease, and some of the tension that she'd been feeling ebbed away. She liked him already and was considering making him her permanent GP.

"So, now that we have that out of the way, how can I help you today?" Dr Noonan asked, still curious about the two of them as that nervousness he'd spotted earlier returned.

"I just found out I'm pregnant and I've been experiencing extreme hyperemesis, and I wanted to see if I could get some maxalon to counteract the nausea" Nina explained as she placed her hands nervously in her lap trying not to play with the necklace around her neck like she normally would when she was nervous.

"I see, and how far along are you?" Dr Noonan asked looking over at her companion and wondering if he was the father. He looked at them both and how far apart they were sitting and was pretty sure they weren't together in a romantic sense, and wondered what their story was.

"I had an ultrasound done when I was in America a couple of days ago and it showed I was six weeks pregnant" Nina answered, wondering if she should have introduced Mick to Dr Noonan, and then was thankful she hadn't needed to yet as it was easier not to have to explain the situation.

"I see, well Hyperemesis is very common between the fourth and twelfth weeks of pregnancy and can vary in it's severity, I don't normally have patients actually diagnose their conditions for me though" Dr Noonan said wondering if Nina was a doctor or a nurse.

"Oh I'm an obstetrician, I work at St Francis hospital in the maternity wing" Nina explained hoping he wouldn't want to do a full examination in order to prescribe her the medication.

"Well, you would definitely know what you are talking about then, I'm going to prescribe you the medicine you requested and suggest you begin taking prenatal vitamins, I'm also going to order a blood test in order to ensure that your hormone levels are rising sufficiently and to make sure all of your blood levels are okay, I'll take your blood pressure too, just to be thorough" Dr Noonan explained as he picked up the phone to call the nurse to bring in the equipment so he could perform the blood test.

About ten minutes later everything was completed and Nina had remembered to introduce Mick and explain his presence, it hadn't been as awkward as she feared but was still difficult.

"Okay, well I should have your blood test results back tomorrow, and the medication should take affect pretty quickly, hopefully you will be feeling a lot better soon, but I'd be taking it easy for the next few days while your system recovers, your blood pressure was a little on the low side, so it's best if you try and rest when you can, will you be returning back to work?" Dr Noonan asked as he packed up the vial with her blood in it and typed up some notes in her records.

"I plan to, I just have to let everyone know that I'm home, I came back from Baltimore fairly suddenly, I was supposed to be there for six months" Nina explained, as she thought again of what she was going to say to all of these people in her life about the baby, and how the baby came to be.

"Well I am sure I don't need to tell you that you need to take care of yourself during pregnancy, I'd definitely inform them of your pregnancy, and advise them that in the later stages you may need reduced hours, now would you like a referral for an obstetrician or do you have one in mind?" Dr Noonan asked, wishing he was qualified to be able to be her doctor throughout this pregnancy, something told him she was going to need a lot of support.

"I haven't really thought about that, do you know any good ones?" Nina asked, already knowing that she didn't really want to see any of the obstetricians at St Francis about this pregnancy, especially Dr Martin Clegg. As she thought of him a vision of him holding a model of a uterus flashed before her eyes and she had to press her lips together tightly to prevent herself from feeling sick again.

"Nina are you okay?" Dr Noonan asked worriedly, he could see she'd gone very pale quickly and was concerned she was going to be sick. She nodded her head, not trusting herself to speak just yet.

"I do know some good obstetricians, I'll just print you off a list, they normally will start seeing you at around eight weeks, now is there anything else I can help you with?" Dr Noonan asked smiling at her, she really was a lovely girl and although he could see that the baby was not planned, he was sure she was going to be a great mum.

"No that's everything, thank you" Nina said as she moved to get up, again taking care not to get up too fast.

"If you need anything at all, my door is always open Nina, I know we've only met today, but if you have any questions about the pregnancy, about how you are feeling or anything at all, you can call me at any time, support is very important in situations like this" Dr Noonan said taking her hand and shaking it gently.

"Thank you Dr Noonan, for everything" Nina said as she ushered Mick out of the room who shook the doctors hand also and thanked him.

"I'll call you tomorrow and get you in to go over your blood tests" Dr Noonan said as he watched them walk out of the door, smiling as Mick's hand went behind Nina's back guiding her out of the door. He wasn't sure exactly what their situation was, but he was pretty sure that Mick was going to be a good support for Nina.

"How soon can you take one of the pills he prescribed you?" Mick asked worriedly as her pallor continued from before when the doctor became concerned.

"I can have one every 8 hours, but I need to eat something half an hour later so I'm going to take it when I get home" Nina asked as she began breathing through her nose and out her mouth slowly trying to counteract the nausea she was feeling. At the moment pregnancy was not as much fun as she had thought it would be. If she could just lessen the severity of the nausea a little it would be easier to bear.

They drove to the chemist to fill her prescription and then to her apartment in silence, Mick not knowing what to say, and Nina doing everything she could to not be sick again. Once she was home she darted to the kitchen immediately and grabbed a glass of water so she could take the pill immediately, hoping it would take affect pretty quickly. She just needed to ensure it stayed down. Once she successfully swallowed the pill she walked over to her couch and laid down, still bone tired from all that had happened that day.

"Did you want me to stay?" Mick asked, not sure if he should stay or go, a big part of him wanted to go and find Billie and talk to her, reason with her and get her back here so she could look after her sister.

"If you want to Mick, I know you probably want to try and find Billie, but she's really hard to find in situations like this, believe me I've tried" Nina smiled ruefully, her sister was definitely strong willed and if she didn't want to be found she wouldn't be.

"Okay then, well I will stay until she gets back, I can at least make you some toast in half an hour so the medicine will definitely work" Mick suggested, torn between not wanting to leave Nina while she was ill, and wanting to go and do his best to find Billie. In the end he decided Nina needed him more right now, so he made himself a cup of tea and watched as Nina finally succumbed to her exhaustion.

Half an hour later and he was gently waking her with a couple of pieces of plain toast, which she ate slowly to ensure that they stayed down. Happy when the pervasive nausea she'd been experiencing didn't rear it's ugly head, she laid back down again, still feeling exhausted.

Mick was just putting her dishes into the dishwasher when the door opened to Nina's apartment and then shut. He felt his heart speed up knowing it was most likely Billie and instinctively walked towards Nina feeling he should protect her if Billie was still angry.

Billie walked into the apartment to see Nina lying on the couch and could see the apprehension in her eyes as she watched her walk in. She was still upset, and it was going to take a while for them all to get through this, but she needed to come here and let Nina know that she was going to be here for her.

"It's okay Neens, I'm not going to rant or rave or throw anything, I just wanted to come back and let you know I'm going to stay at Mum's for a while, I haven't told her why but I do you want you to know I'm not going to hide from you Neens, and I am going to be here for you, I don't hate you" Billie said as tears formed in her eyes and she could see tears in Nina's eyes too.

"Oh Billie, I'm so sorry" Nina said stopping herself before she could say if she could turn back time she would, because part of her wanted the baby, the strongest part of her did.

"I can't say I'm okay with this yet, but you're my sister Neens and I'm not going to let you go through this alone" Billie said as she approached her sister and then took her in her arms, knowing that her sister must be beside herself with worry over their relationship.

"It's going to be okay Neens" Billie whispered as she rocked a distraught Nina in her arms, whispering the words over and over again.

When Nina finally calmed down, Billie could see she was exhausted both physically and emotionally. She pulled the blanket over Nina and silently encouraged her to sleep, smiling as sleep took hold of Nina swiftly. She watched her sleep for a few minutes and then turned to look at Mick, knowing they needed to talk too. She needed to know how involved he was going to be and whether there were any feelings involved here. This situation was a mess, but she had a feeling they'd all come out of this stronger than before.

She silent motioned for Mick to head upstairs so they could talk a little about the situation and clear the air a little. Despite all that had happened she loved Mick and she wasn't going to let this situation ruin their relationship, she remembered how badly she'd treated both Mick and Nina after she'd found out they'd slept together, and how it had almost destroyed their relationship, despite it occurring after she and Mick had broken up.

She quietly followed Mick upstairs, squaring her shoulders, ready for the conversation that was about to ensue, knowing that it wouldn't resolve everything, but that it would be a start in trying to make some sense of this mess.

She couldn't help but look back and ensure Nina was okay, and smiled at her sister sleeping peacefully on the couch. It was going to be hard, but they would get through it, she knew that Nina had never meant for anything like this to happen, and she knew she had no right to be angry with her, even if she was hurt. She was going to do whatever she could to make her peace with this, so that she could enjoy being an aunty and help Nina through the pregnancy.

_Okay, leaving it there. So Billie is still upset, but going to support her sister. Next up the Proudman clan learn of Nina's pregnancy and Geraldine gets a surprise visitor. Also, yes I have introduced Dr Noonan into the series earlier than in the series, but I love his character and thought it might lend some complexity to the story later on. Thanks again for reading. Mel_


	4. Chapter 4

**A Mess of Her Own Making **

**Chapter 4**

Once Billie and Mick were settled on Billie's bed upstairs they couldn't quite work out how to start the conversation. Billie normally being the blunt one knew it would have to be her, she could see that he was waiting for her to say something but she wasn't sure what she wanted to ask first.

"A baby is going to change everything" Billie said, the enormity of the situation hitting her, this was not the same as her sister sleeping with her ex boyfriend in a night of alcohol, ice cream fuelled passion, this was a whole other level.

"I know, but Billie this doesn't change us, I love you" Mick said wanting to take her in his arms and comfort her on this but knew she didn't need that right now.

"I know you do Mick, but I need to know how involved you plan to be in this baby's life, in my sister's life" Billie said, wishing she didn't have to ask these questions but knew if she didn't the not knowing would fester inside her and destroy her relationship with Mick.

"She's carrying my baby Billie, I can't just let her do this alone" Mick told Billie, with no hesitation, he was committed to this baby and to helping Nina through the pregnancy and being an active father to his child.

"I know Mick, and it makes me love you even more that you want to be there for her, please know I want to be too and I want to work this out so that I don't lose either of you" Billie said, thinking of her sister and how worried she must be about their relationship.

"Billie, I'm committed to you, and yes I'd prefer it if you were pregnant with my child not Nina, but this has happened, I can't un ring the bell and a part of me doesn't want to, because then it would mean my child doesn't exist" Mick told Billie, wanting her to hear how he already thought of himself as a father, even though he knew there was a chance Nina could still miscarry. The thought terrified him and he wanted to make sure he did all he could to ensure she got through the first trimester of this pregnancy safely, remembering something about there being less risk of a miscarriage after the first trimester.

"Does this change how you feel about Nina?" Billie asked, she'd believed him when he'd told her that Nina and he were just mates, that it was a terrible one off and that it hadn't meant anything to either of them.

"No it doesn't, at least not in that way, Nina and I are going to be parents, so that changes our relationship, but it doesn't change how I feel about her romantically, I'm not into her like that Billie, I only feel that way about you" Mick said, determined to show Billie that he loved her, and that this baby was not going to be a threat to their relationship.

"God, this is so fucked up" Billie said, tears forming in her eyes as she thought of the conversation she and Mick shared about babies only a few days earlier. How could they even think of trying for a baby now.

"I know Billie, but please know Nina and I did everything we could to prevent this, as drunk as we were, we took precautions, sometimes those precautions just don't work" Mick told her, pleading with her to believe him.

"I know Mick, when I was angry with you both I interrogated Nina about that night at her work, she told me you used a condom" Billie said knowing there was still so much more they needed to talk about, but right now she just really needed him to hold her.

"Could you just hold me for a while, I need to just feel you" Billie said as she moved towards him and sighed as his arms wrapped around her and he pulled her down onto the bed. They lay there for what felt like hours wrapped up in each others arms until both of them fell asleep.

Billie was awakened by noises coming from downstairs and was immediately concerned for Nina, from what she could tell pregnancy wasn't being very kind to her sister. She looked over at Mick who was still asleep and quietly slipped out of his arms.

She walked down the stairs and cringed as a door banged shut and she could hear muffled coughs coming from the bathroom. She hurried down the stairs and barrelled into the bathroom intent on helping Nina with the morning sickness and tried her hardest not to breathe for fear that she'd sympathy vomit.

When Nina was finished, she pulled her into her arms and gently stroked her hair while Nina caught her breath, her energy completely wasted. Once she felt Nina was up for talking she tapped her shoulder to gain her attention.

"I thought Mick had taken you to get pills to help with feeling sick" Billie asked not liking the paleness of Nina's face, and wondering if she should call their mother, she'd know what to do for Nina.

"He did, and I took one, but it's not 100% effective, I went to get some toast and there was something in the fridge that was off and the smell just hit me, and I ended up in here" Nina said trying not to think of the smell that had come from the fridge, for fear that it would set off a new round of nausea.

"Is this normal Neens, should you be this sick?" Billie asked letting her worry for her sister overshadow everything else she was feeling at the moment.

"It's part of pregnancy Billie, a sign that my body is producing enough hormones to sustain the pregnancy" Nina explained.

"You're using the doctor voice" Billie said smiling at Nina's explanation.

"I am a doctor Billie, this is what I do for a living" Nina reminded Billie, feeling well enough to get off the floor.

"Is there anything I can do, to help you feel better?" Billie asked wanting Nina to know that despite everything she was here for her, she wasn't going to let her go through this alone.

"Shouldn't you be talking to Mick still?" Nina asked wanting Billie to know she was okay, and that ensuring her relationship with Mick was okay was more important than some nausea.

"We talked, we probably still need to talk more, but he's asleep and I heard you, and I just wanted to help" Billie asked, wondering if Nina wanted her help, or if it was too much for her sister. Nina had a habit of making sure everyone else was okay and forgetting herself.

"I'm sorry Billie, but I need to get off this cold floor" Nina said as she started to shiver a little, she got up gingerly not wanting to induce another dizzy spell, and grabbed her sisters hand and led her into the lounge room. She grabbed the package of salted crackers she'd found in the cupboard and opened them up before she sat down on the lounge and pulled a blanket around her. She began nibbling on one as Billie sat down next to her and looked over at Billie wondering if they should talk about this or if it was too much for Billie right now.

They sat there in companionable silence for a while, Nina nibbling on her crackers and Billie just watching her, taking in Nina and trying to think of how to talk to Nina about the baby and about Mick. She looked at her sister and other than the paleness of her face and the fact that she was nibbling on those crackers like her life depended on them, there were no outward signs that her sister carried a tiny baby within her.

"I thought pregnant women's boobs were supposed to get bigger" Billie said cutting through the tension in the only way she knew how, with humour.

"They do and they have, it's just not as big a change as most people think" Nina said smiling as she thought of the changes her body was going to go through in the next eight months.

"Yeah well it's a bit hard to tell with that big thick dressing gown you have on, aren't you hot?" Billie asked trying not to look at her sisters chest, but her curiousity was getting the better of her.

"Would you like me to take it off so you can see for yourself?" Nina dead panned, knowing there was a big possibility Billie would say yes.

"Nah it's okay, I'll just look when you have less clothes on" Billie said, and they both laughed knowing she definitely would.

"Billie, you have to know that I never meant for this to happen" Nina said, deciding to take the first step and assure Billie, that she didn't want this pregnancy to affect their relationship and Billie's relationship with Mick.

"I know Neens, it's just a lot to get my head around" Billie said knowing deep down her sister would never knowingly do anything to hurt her.

"Tell me about it, and I've had a couple of days to get used to it" Nina told Billie, not knowing how to convey to her, that she knew deep down that everything was going to be okay.

"Neens, I know you and Mick are just mates, and I believe you both when you say that night meant nothing to you, but you guys are going to be parents together, you are going to share a bond together that I should be experiencing with Mick, and none of us really know how this is going to change things" Billie told Nina, knowing she'd understand what she meant. None of them knew how this new bond between Nina and Mick would change things and she decided it was best if they all stayed honest about everything.

"I know Billie, I know you and Mick were talking about having kids together and getting married, and I don't want this pregnancy to change that, I don't want you to put any of your plans on hold because of me" Nina told Billie, taking her hand in hers wanting her to know that she was not going to come between the two of them.

"Nina, I need you to be honest with me, if your feelings for Mick change at all in the future, I need you to tell me, I know hormones and stuff can do weird things for the body and I don't want you to feel like you can't tell me if things change for you, I'm not going to step out of the way and let you have him, but I think the only way to get through this is for us all to be honest, no matter how much it hurts" Billie said to Nina, knowing it would devastate her if Nina did develop feelings for Mick, and it would devastate her even more if Mick returned those feelings, but she was a truth person, and she'd rather know than have them hide their feelings.

"I promise you Billie, if anything changes I will tell you, but I really do only see Mick as a friend, who happens to be the father of my baby" Nina tried to reassure Billie with the truth of that statement. She was still in the process of getting over Chris, and now finding out she was pregnant, there was no way she was entertaining romantic feelings about any man, let alone Mick.

"Yeah well you still need to tell Mum and the rest of the family, they are going to want to know why you came back so early" Billie told her, knowing this part was going to be difficult for Nina. Of everyone in the family, Nina was the last person they'd expect to get accidentally pregnant to a person she'd had a one night stand with. And the fact that the one night stand happened to be Mick was even worse.

"I wish I didn't have to, but I know I'm not going to be able to hide this forever, they will find out eventually and then there's work I need to tell them, see if Martin's still willing to take me back" Nina said hoping that she'd still be able to work at St Francis, she couldn't even think of working anywhere else.

"Of course they will, you're the best obstetrician in the place, they'd be crazy not to let you come back" Billie told her and saw that Nina had tears in her eyes and suddenly didn't know what to do.

"Sorry, my hormones are all over the place at the moment, even the smallest thing sets me off" Nina explained wiping the tears from her eyes.

"It's going to be okay Neens, Mick and I will be with you when you tell Mum, Dad and Jimmy – oh shit Jimmy, he's still overseas" Billie exclaimed wondering how they were going to break the news to their little brother when they didn't even know what country he was in at the moment.

"We could just wait to tell Jimmy till he comes back, I'm sure by then I'll be showing and it won't be hard to guess" Nina laughed her mind picturing welcoming Jimmy at the arrival gates at the airport, her with a noticeable bump and Jimmy thinking she was depressed over the end of her quasi relationship with Chris and was fat.

"Yeah, Jimmy's not that observant, he'd probably just think you'd gotten fat" Billie said and then cursed herself for her bluntness hoping it wouldn't start another round of tears.

"I was just thinking the same thing" Nina laughed and Billie joined in. They were both startled by a noise coming from upstairs and Billie realised that Mick was awake and was probably coming down stairs. She grabbed Nina and hugged her, having needed to do that from the moment they'd started talking, she knew actions would speak louder than words to Nina, and they both needed the physical affirmation that their bond as sisters was not going to be broken by this.

"Everything okay down here?" Mick asked as he approached them a little hesitantly, he could see Nina had been crying, but he was pleased to see Billie's arms around Nina, he breathed a little sigh of relief when he saw their relationship was still as strong as ever.

"Yep, Nina and I were just wondering how we were going to break the news to Mum and Dad" Billie said looking up at Mick and catching the smile on his face.

"I'm going to be there when you do Nina, I'm not going to let you face them alone" Mick said looking at Billie and hoping he had her blessing.

"Of course you will be Mick, I'm going to be there too, but I think it's probably best if we get it over and done with as soon as we can, otherwise Neens is going to over think it and she'll probably hyperventilate and that won't be good for the baby" Billie said getting into protective sister mode.

"I'm not going to hyperventilate Billie, and I know this needs to be done, but I am really tired, can we see them tomorrow?" Nina said just wanting to go to her room and sleep, she felt like she could sleep for weeks.

"Okay, tomorrow but I think we should go over there for breakfast, it's going to be easier if we rip off the band-aid straight away" Billie said grabbing her phone so she could ring Geraldine.

"Hi mum, yes Neens is home, can we come over for breakfast tomorrow?" Billie asked and then nodded as her mum said something.

"We'll talk about it tomorrow mum, love you bye" Billie said and then ended the call knowing the longer she talked to her mother the more likely she was to get it out of her, the real reason Nina was home.

"Now, you should eat something more than just those crackers, and then we should get you off to bed, I can see you are exhausted Neens" Billie said as she got up to walk into the kitchen.

"Fine, but just some toast, my stomach's still a little touchy" Nina said smiling as her sister took charge and started to prepare everything. She wanted nothing more than to lie back on the lounge and fall asleep, but she knew it was best for the baby if she ate something more substantial than crackers.

"What can I do?" Mick asked wanting to be useful as well.

"You can go down to the shops and grab some ginger tea and some ginger ale for Nina, I've heard ginger helps with nausea" Billie told him and ushered him out of the door.

By the time he got back Nina was almost finished her first piece of toast and it didn't look like it was going to come up. He was pleased, he knew that she needed to eat more and if he had to come over and bring her things to help counteract the nausea he would.

"Here you go Neens try this" Billie said as she handed her a steaming mug of ginger tea. Nina sniffed at it and smiled at the fragrant smell coming from the cup. She gingerly took a sip and was pleased when the taste wasn't too bad either. Within a few minutes she'd finished her second piece of toast and half the cup of tea and the nausea had passed completely.

"Thank you both, I really needed that" Nina told them feeling for the first time that maybe just maybe everything really was going to be okay.

"Did you want to get some sleep now?" Billie asked happy to see the toast and the tea disappear with no signs of it coming back up.

"I might just sit for a little bit, let it all go down, but I don't think I'll be up for long, I'm so tired I could sleep for weeks" Nina said yawning as a wave of tiredness and contentedness enveloped her. She smiled at her sister and Mick pleased that they were both going to be here, that she wasn't going to have to go through this pregnancy and becoming a mother alone.

A little while later she excused herself to go to bed, she was falling asleep against Billie's shoulder and knew she'd be much more comfortable in bed. She rebuffed their offers of help and wandered into her bedroom to get ready for bed. As she undressed she stood in front of her mirror trying to see any sign that she was indeed pregnant, but couldn't other than her boobs being a little bigger than normal, her abdomen was just as flat as it normally was.

She ran a hand over her abdomen thinking of the baby that resided under her palm and knew that no matter what she was never going to regret it's existence. She tried to think of whether it would be a boy or a girl but couldn't manage to bring forth an image of what her child would look like, she was too tired for her imagination to work properly.

She crawled into bed and allowed the softness of her pillows and her doona envelope her, lulling her off to a dream filled sleep, her hand resting protectively over her abdomen as she slept.

_Okay leaving it there as the confrontation between Geraldine and Nina will take up a bit of the story. Geraldine was very disapproving of Nina's actions in the series, and while she's going to be happy about being a grandma, it's going to be difficult for her to accept the result of Nina's actions, knowing the possible ramifications for Billie. _


	5. Chapter 5

**A Mess of her Own Making**

**Chapter 5**

The next morning Nina awoke to slight nausea but not the overwhelming nausea she'd been experiencing the last week or so. She grabbed the package of crackers she had kept by the bedside table and nibbled on a few hoping that would prevent the nausea from getting any worse. Once she felt human enough she got out of bed feeling better than she had in a little while and went to get ready for the day.

She was trying very hard not to imagine what her mother would say to this development in her life, but couldn't stop the rolling of her imagination, the images playing through her mind causing her more anxiety as she went on. She stopped mid way through putting on her pants and tried to breathe slowly, willing her mind to clear so she could continue getting ready. Once she felt under control again she finished dressing and walked out into the kitchen and made herself some toast knowing she was going to need something in her stomach so she could take the next tablet for the nausea. The last thing she needed was to have the anxiety she was feeling cause her to feel sick whilst telling her Mum about the baby.

She smiled as she thought of the baby and rested her hand on her stomach probing for any sign of the baby that resided in there. She was halfway through her first piece of toast when her phone rang and she rushed to go and get it before it woke up Billie and Mick who had fallen asleep on her couch it seemed.

"Hello" She answered wondering who would be calling her at this time of the morning. _Probably a sales call_ she thought.

"Nina, It's Dr Martin Clegg, I was informed by the head obstetrician at John Hopkins that you left rather suddenly and I was wondering if you'd be able to come into the hospital today so we could have a little chat" Martin asked.

"I- um okay" Nina said wondering if the head obstetrician had given Martin any inkling of the reason she'd left Baltimore in such a hurry.

"Excellent shall we say around noon?" Martin asked.

"That should be fine Martin, I'll see you then" Nina replied and then hung up, her mind going into overdrive on the reason for Martin's call and what she was going to tell him when she did see him.

"Everything okay Neens?" Billie asked as she walked over to Nina who was still clutching the phone in her hands.

"That was Martin, the head obstetrician at John Hopkins informed him that I'd left and he wants to see me today" Nina told Billie, not really sure if she could handle two confrontations today.

"What did you say, do you think it's a good idea to see him given the conversation you are going to have with Mum today?" Billie asked worried about the stress today might put on Nina.

"I need to work Billie, I need to get back to some kind of normality, so this isn't so overwhelming" Nina said as her hand moved to her abdomen unconsciously.

"You will Neens, you just don't have to do it all at once, I can call Martin and let him know you'll see him tomorrow if you want?" Billie asked looking at her sister and trying to judge her state of health that morning. She did look a lot better than she looked last night, her face wasn't as pale and she looked a lot more rested.

"No Billie, as you said yesterday I just need to rip the band-aid off and just get it over with" Nina said as she grabbed her remaining piece of toast and started munching on it. She marvelled at the fact that she actually felt hungry, a feeling she hadn't felt in the last couple of days.

"Okay then, do you want me to come to the hospital with you then? I can drive you there and home?" Billie asked not wanting Nina to be alone if Martin decided that he couldn't have her back at St Francis.

"Thanks Billie I'd appreciate that" Nina said and looked over as she saw Mick getting off the lounge.

"Hey Neens, how are you feeling this morning" Mick said as he stretched from sleeping on the lounge. Nina's lounge was very comfortable but didn't compare to sleeping on a bed.

"Better, I actually felt hungry this morning which is a good change" Nina told him as she finished off her second piece of toast.

"That is good to hear, well I'm going to take a shower as I'm sure you're Mum is expecting us over first thing" Mick said as he flicked his eyes over to Billie's hoping she'd catch on that he wanted her to join him. They'd not been intimate together since they'd found out about the baby and he figured it was best to get back on that horse as soon as possible before things got weird between them.

"Yeah I should go get ready to, do you need anything before we head up?" Billie asked torn between being with Mick and wanting to sit with Nina until it was time to go. She wanted to be there to distract Nina from all the thoughts she knew would be going through her head.

"No I'm fine, I'll just watch some TV until you both come back down" Nina said, smirking as she watched the look the passed between Mick and Billie and went to sit on the couch pulling a blanket around her hoping she didn't nod off while they were getting ready.

By the time Mick and Billie came back down Nina had nodded off on the couch, her hand resting protectively on her abdomen and her golden blonde hair spilling over onto her cheek. Mick tried very hard not to think of how beautiful Nina looked at that moment and instead focused on the look on Billie's face when she saw Nina asleep on the lounge.

"I don't have the heart to wake her, but I know we need to get this over with" Billie whispered to Mick who nodded agreeing with her sentiment. He watched as Billie went over and gently woke Nina pushing her hair back from her cheek.

"Neens, time to wake up" Billie said gently wanting Nina to wake slowly in case the nausea had returned.

"Billie, did we miss breakfast?" Nina asked as her stomach growled for the first time in what seemed forever.

"No we didn't Neens, but we should get going, Mum's probably been up for hours" Billie said as she helped steady Nina when she got off the couch.

The drive to their Mum's place was made in silence, all of them lost in their own thoughts as they continued on their way. When they arrived all of them were hesitant to walk inside but knew they had to get this over with so they all got out of the car and walked in together wanting to present a front of solidarity to the family.

"Nina, I'm so glad you are home, I've missed you my darling" Geraldine said as she welcomed her child in her arms, a little alarmed when Nina began sobbing into her shoulder. She looked over at Mick and Billie in question and gently guided Nina to the lounge where she could sit. Nina couldn't explain why she felt so emotional, only that she really needed her Mum in that moment, a feeling she hadn't felt since she was a child. She felt her Mum's arms wrap tighter around her and revelled in the feeling of safety she felt there even though she knew it wouldn't last.

Once Nina was calm Geraldine told Billie to put on a pot of tea and bring out breakfast, knowing instinctively that she wasn't going to like the reason Nina was back so suddenly from Baltimore and she wanted to get down to the bottom of it as soon as possible. Like the rest of her family she was in favour of getting the bad things out of the way as soon as possible, rather than sitting on them and letting them fester.

"Nina, my darling what's happened?" Geraldine asked as she stroked her child's hair, taking in the paleness of Nina's features and the pain that registered on Nina's face. She knew something had to have happened to drive Nina back home only weeks after leaving for Baltimore.

"Maybe we should eat before we talk about that" Billie interjected thinking it might be best for Nina to eat while she felt hungry.

"Well your father's on his way so we should probably wait for him to talk" Geraldine said as she got up and began helping Billie to get the things out for breakfast. They'd all just sat down when there was a knock at the door which meant that Nina's father had arrived. Nina prepared herself for seeing her Dad, not wanting to break down in tears again for fear that she'd give things away before she got a chance to tell them.

"Nina! It's so good to have you home" Darcy said as he walked up and gave his daughter a hug and then went on to hug Billie and Mick.

"This looks great Geraldine" Darcy said as he kissed his wife on the cheek and sat down looking around at his children wondering what was going on. He noticed that both Billie and Nina looked nervous and so did Mick and was concerned about why Mick was involved. He looked over at Billie and could see she looked as well as ever, and then looked at Nina and saw she was pale and a little green at the gills, could be jet-lag but he was still worried, he'd never seen Nina sick, she was generally a pretty healthy person.

"Well lets eat then and after that we can talk about the reason Nina came home early" Geraldine said and began to tuck into food only to stop midway as Nina rushed up from the table and into the bathroom. She watched Billie follow and Mick looked like he wanted to also and wondered just what was going on. She got up to follow Billie and heard the unmistakable sounds of Nina being sick and was even more worried.

"What's going on, is Nina sick?" Geraldine asked, her worry for her daughter climbing the longer she was in the bathroom. When Nina did come out Billie was helping her as she was a little shaky and took her straight to the lounge to lie down.

"Mum, we will explain in a bit, but Neens needs to lie down right now or she'll fall down" Billie told her Mum, knowing they were all concerned for Nina, but that any conversation was going to have to wait till Nina regained a bit of strength back after that bout of morning sickness.

"It's alright Mum, I know you are worried but you don't need to be, this is normal" Nina said wondering if her Mum would pick up on the implication. Right now she didn't feel like coming out and saying the words and hoped her Mum was as perceptive as she usually was.

"You're pregnant, is that what you are saying?" Geraldine said her face lighting up at the news that she was going to be a grandmother.

"Yes Mum, Neens is but it's complicated and I don't know if Neens is up to telling the whole story right now" Billie said, taking control of the situation and giving Nina an out if she needed it.

"It's okay Billie, I'm okay that was just my nerves getting to me I think" Nina said as she fiddled with her necklace and sat up a little so she could have this conversation with her parents.

"Maybe I should explain" Mick said jumping in and wanting to save Nina from having to go through this. His fears that the situation would make Nina sick again had been realised and he knew he needed to step up and help her through this.

"Why would you – oh God, no it's not is it?" Geraldine asked her hand covering her mouth as the implications sunk in.

"Yes the baby is mine" Mick stated as he sat next to Nina and took her hand wanting to show her parents that Nina and he were a team in this and that although it wasn't ideal they were both happy about it.

"And you know about this Billie?" Geraldine asked wondering how her daughter could be so calm about her partner knocking up her sister.

"Yes Mum and even though I'm still upset about this, the most important thing here is that Neens needs us and I'm going to be here to support her" Billie said as she squeezed Nina's other hand showing her Mum that things were okay, were going to be okay and there was no need to be worried.

"I'm so sorry Mum, Mick and I, we never expected this to happen, but it has and I'm keeping the baby, I know how upset with me you were when you found out I slept with Mick, but I really need you to not be angry with me now" Nina said as tears formed in her eyes.

"Did you even use protection?" Geraldine asked still shocked at the news that Mick was the father of her daughter's baby. This was such a messed up situation and as much as she'd like to hold her child and tell her it was going to be okay, she felt she needed to be the one in this situation who looked at the bigger picture. A baby was going to change everything and even though Billie was being so good right now, sooner or later it was going to get to her and then things would blow up and she didn't want Billie to lose Mick over something like this.

"Geraldine, I know you are upset about this, but you know your daughter, of course she – we used protection, we might have been drunk, but we weren't stupid, neither of us wanted this to happen it just has" Mick said wanting Geraldine to understand that this was just a mistake, one that no one had intended, and it had happened and she needed to just accept it.

"I don't know what to say, I'm sorry Nina but I need some time to come to terms with this, and Mick you better do everything you can to make sure that this situation doesn't hurt my daughter, do you understand?" Geraldine said unable to accept that her daughter had gotten pregnant to her other daughter's partner after a thoughtless one night stand. She got up from the table and went to her room, sure that if she stayed in the room any longer that she'd say something that would upset Nina.

"Geraldine" Darcy called out and then looked back at his daughter weeping into her sister's shoulder and felt nothing but pride for the way these three were handling this.

"Your mother, she'll come around you'll see, congratulations sweetheart, I know it doesn't seem like a good thing right now, but I am thrilled to be a grandfather and I know you'll make a terrific mother" Darcy said as Mick stood up to make room for Darcy on the lounge. He took his daughter into his arms and held her as she cried, hoping that his wife would indeed come around. He knew how Geraldine felt about infidelity and although he knew Nina and Mick had slept together outside of Mick's relationship with Billie, Geraldine was never going to react well to things like this, and that was mostly his fault.

"I'm sorry sweetheart, if I'd been more faithful to your mother, she might not have reacted like this, but you'll see we'll get through this together, and when that baby gets here, it's going to be born into a family of love, you'll see" Darcy said taking Billie's hand in his own wanting her to know he was there for her too.

It wasn't long before the emotion of the morning caught up with Nina and she drifted off to into a restless sleep, still grasping her father's hand as she slept.

Nina awoke a short time later to find herself alone in the lounge room and took a moment to compose herself before she went to find her sister so they could go to the hospital. She just wanted to get the two conversations out of the way, so she could go home and sleep the rest of the day away.

"Neens you're awake, are you ok?" Billie asked as Nina walked out the back to where she and Mick had been discussing the events of the morning. It had gone pretty much as Billie had expected. She knew Geraldine would be angry with Nina, and she knew her father would be accepting of the situation. What she hadn't expected was for Geraldine's reaction to awaken her own hurt about this situation and she was glad she had Mick with her to help her get her head straight again before Nina woke up.

"I'm about as okay as I can be Billie, can we head to the hospital, I want to get this over with so I can go home and sleep for the rest of the day" Nina asked Billie knowing she had one more difficult conversation to go through before she could do that.

"Of course Neens, I'll see you at home Mick" Billie said as she kissed Mick goodbye and went and grabbed her things so she could drive Nina to the hospital.

When they were in the car Nina really didn't want to talk so she stayed as quiet as she could in the hopes that Billie wouldn't want to talk either. She wanted to think about what she was going to say to Martin, and whether he would take her back knowing that she was pregnant and would need to go on maternity leave in about six months.

"You thinking about what you are going to tell Martin?" Billie asked not being able to handle the silence in the car any longer. She knew if she let Nina stew on what happened at their parents place that she would end up either having an anxiety attack or throwing up in the car, neither of which she wanted to happen at that moment.

"I am, but I don't really want to talk about it Billie, I'm exhausted I just want to sit here for a while" Nina said, feeling her sister's concern for her but this was her work, her responsibility and if she couldn't go back to work at St Francis she would rather know now rather than later, so she could work out what she was going to do for the next six months or so of her life before the baby came.

"Okay Neens, we should be there in a couple of minutes" Billie said as she squeezed Nina's knee gently and concentrated on getting them there.

_Leaving it there as I wanted to have the conversation between Martin and Nina in the next chapter._


	6. Chapter 6

**A Mess of her Own Making **

**Chapter 6.**

Nina almost turned around when she saw the steps to the hospital she had worked in for the last few years. She loved this hospital and she loved the friends she'd made in this hospital but she knew that they'd all have an opinion on her situation and part of her felt that maybe it would be best if Martin did tell her he couldn't keep her on.

She felt Billie take her hand and gently guide her into the building and smiled in awe of her sister's compassion and strength. She had been so worried that Billie learning she was pregnant to Mick would result in the loss of their relationship and she was beyond relieved and grateful that it hadn't. She wasn't a fool to believe that there wouldn't be any difficulties, especially as the pregnancy progressed but for now she was happy that her sister was here, supporting her.

"Let's hope Cherie isn't here, she'll take one look at you and know you're pregnant" Billie said trying to lighten the mood a little. She smiled when Nina giggled a little and put an arm around her.

"You're right, she's always had that knack, God I don't even know what to tell Cherie, or Zara or Kim" Nina said only just realising how much this baby was really going to impact her life. Everyone at work would have an opinion on not only the way her pregnancy came about but any number of things to do with the pregnancy and birth.

"You don't have to work that all out now Neens, lets just keep taking one step at a time" Billie said seeing the panic begin to register on Nina's face and becoming concerned, Nina throwing up at work would be a dead give away to her condition.

"You're right, thanks Billie" Nina said as they entered the lift to go up the obstetrics ward. They walked fairly silently towards Martin's office happy to find that neither of the trio Nina was concerned about seeing were at the front desk.

Billie knocked on Martin's door for Nina and then kissed her cheek and motioned to a seat near the front desk that she was going to sit at and wait for Nina to finish her meeting with Martin. After hearing Martin call out to enter Nina took Billie into a hug and then released her giving her a quick smile before entering Martin's office.

"Ah Nina, welcome back from Baltimore, please have a seat" Martin said looking at Nina curiously. He took in the lack of sleep, the paleness of her face and instantly knew the problem. One didn't get to his position without being able to tell the signs of pregnancy easily. He really hoped it wasn't Chris' baby because he didn't feel like being the one to break the news to Nina that Chris had left. He knew Nina probably didn't realise just how much he admired her and was becoming to like her. She accepted him for who he was and had always accepted his eccentricities without question.

"Thank you Martin" Nina said as she sat down watching Martin's face for any sign that he'd discovered her secret.

"Now, I asked you here today to gauge your interest in returning to work at St Francis, and also to ask if the reason for your abrupt departure from Baltimore was going to affect your return to St Francis" Martin said, leaving the door open for her to explain herself without letting on that he knew about her pregnancy.

"Yes, well I of course would like to return to St Francis, but there is something you should know Martin" Nina said trying as hard as she could to remain calm as she talked to Martin not wanting to become to anxious in case it brought on another bout of morning sickness.

"You're pregnant I know, and just so you know that will not be an issue, congratulations Nina' Martin told her feeling truly happy for her. As an obstetrician he could not think of any greater thing than to be able to bring life into the world, he only wished it were possible for a male to be able to bring life into the world also. For now he was going to have to content himself with being able to at least provide half of the necessary ingredients.

"Thank you Martin, I appreciate that, I would probably be able to work up until a couple of weeks before the birth and I will return after I assure you" Nina told him wanting to ensure he knew how committed she still was to her career.

"Of course Nina and if I can be of any support to you during your pregnancy and after the baby's birth please don't hesitate to ask, there is one question I have to ask and don't feel you have to answer it" Martin said not wanting to upset Nina, but knowing that if Chris was the father then it was his duty to inform her that Chris had left the hospital.

"If you want to know who the baby's father is I can tell you, it's not Chris, he and I, well things never progressed that far, the baby's father is Mick" Nina said suddenly feeling like crying again but steeled herself against the tears that threatened. Truth was she had hardly thought of Chris in the last few weeks what with the situation with Billie and the fatigue that she'd experienced over in Baltimore, there wasn't time for those kind of thoughts.

"Ah I see, I can imagine this would be an extremely difficult situation for you Nina, if you are in need of support, in whatever way, know that I am here for you, as I am sure are your colleagues, friends and family" Martin said knowing Nina was close to tears and feeling a little uncomfortable to be letting out the depth of his feelings for Nina, but she needed to know that he was her friend and he would be there for her if she needed him.

"Thank you Martin, I appreciate your support and for wanting me to return to St Francis, I think I really need work right now, I need some stability" Nina said grateful for this strange man who at one stage she thought was from another planet. Well she still thought he was from another planet but she was beginning to see that there was a lot more to Martin Clegg than meets the eye.

"You're welcome Nina, you are one of the best Obstetricians I have ever worked with and St Francis would not be the same without you, in regards to coming back to work, I suggest you take a few days to recuperate, both of us know how strenuous early pregnancy can be, oh I forgot to ask how far along you were" Martin asked curiously his eyes straying to her midsection briefly.

"I'm about seven weeks pregnant, I had an ultrasound before I came home to date the pregnancy, and thank you Martin I will take your suggestion on board, I might go if that's okay I really need to get some sleep" Nina said as a wave of tiredness came over her.

"Of course Nina, again welcome back and Nina, this will be a good thing, you'll see, becoming a parent is a great joy and I know you will excel at it" Martin said as he stood up to see her out of his office.

Nina walked out of Martin's office feeling drained but also feeling a lot better about things. She still had her job and her sister, and she was going to have a baby. She was going to be someone's mum and the thought of it made her smile.

"How'd it go?" Billie asked as she looked Nina over to see if she'd been crying and was happy to see that Nina looked a lot happier than she had when she'd walked into Martin's office.

"He said he's happy for me to return to work and he guessed that I was pregnant, how I don't know it must be written on my face" Nina said as she thought over the things that Martin had said to her and how much she'd come to value his friendship.

"The paleness of your face is a bit of a give away especially as you never get sick Neens" Billie said happy that things had gone well. She had no idea what she would have done to help Nina if Martin had told her they didn't have a position for her.

"Yes he said I should take a few days to recuperate and then come back to work" Nina said as she yawned as the tiredness she had been feeling earlier grew stronger. She really wanted to go home and sleep.

"That sounds like the best idea, lets get you home so you can start on that" Billie said ushering Nina to the lift quickly hoping they wouldn't get caught in the hospital. There was time for everyone else to learn that Nina was home and of her pregnancy but right now she knew Nina needed to go home to sleep and come to terms that her life had just changed forever.

And sleep she did for the rest of the day only getting up to eat and when the nausea got the best of her.

She spent the better part of the next couple of days doing the same thing, sleeping, eating when she could and just spending time with her sister as they came to terms with the huge change that had occurred in their lives. Billie spent the time trying not to be upset with Nina about this pregnancy and to remain supportive, in between spending time with Mick and trying to keep their relationship intact and not allow jealousy over the bond that Nina and Mick now had to consume her.

Sometimes it was just too hard and she had to go and talk to someone else about things and she would leave Nina with Mick who doted over Nina and made sure she had everything she needed. She knew Mick was going to make a great father, but it really hurt that his first child wasn't going to be theirs together. No matter how hard she tried to, she just couldn't get past that thought right now and she resolved that for now, until Nina was stronger that she would ensure that when she was feeling like shit, that she'd leave so she didn't feel the urge to take it out on Nina.

The day Nina was to return to work Billie got up early to make sure that Nina had a good breakfast to eat before hand and prepare some snacks that would help Nina retain her energy throughout the day without making her feel too sick. They'd done some research on the types of food that were good for Nina to eat to help with the nausea and to help with her flagging energy levels and had come up with a meal plan that was helping a lot. The nausea wasn't nearly as bad and they had begun a light exercise plan which would keep her fit and healthy for the duration of the pregnancy.

Nina was almost entering her eighth week of pregnancy and she knew that in a couple of weeks the nausea would recede and her energy levels would pick up as she entered the second trimester, there was still some risk of miscarriage which honestly terrified her, she already loved this baby than she could have thought possible.

Once Nina emerged from her room, sleep tussled and nausea free for the moment she smiled as she looked at the breakfast that Billie had prepared for her and was amazed by how well Billie was handling all of this. A part of her was waiting for the other shoe to drop, but the biggest part of her wanted to believe that Billie would continue her support of her and that even when things got hard that they'd get through this together.

"Morning Neens, I made you breakfast in honour of your return to work" Billie said looking at her sister and smiled at her sister looking a lot healthier than she had in the previous days. As they'd worked on Nina's nutrition and getting her to sleep a lot more, Nina's morning sickness had almost disappeared, which drew sighs of relief from both Mick and Billie.

"Thank you Billie, I really appreciate you being here" Nina said wanting to emphasise how much she appreciated her sister's support but was uncharacteristically lost for words.

"It's okay Neens, I know if our situations were reversed you'd be there for me" Billie said and knew that it was completely true and was once again determined that this situation would not ruin their bond as sisters. Nina was the one person she admired the most in the world and nothing would ever be able to change that.

"You're right Billie I would, but I want you to know I know this, is hard for you and I appreciate that you are here, making me breakfast, helping me eat healthy for the baby and being so supportive of me, you amaze me" Nina said as she walked up to her sister and hugged her trying not to let hormones get to her.

"Come on now no getting sooky on me, lets eat before this gets cold, I made you some snacks for work too because you know it's important for you to eat regularly and you should make sure if you are getting tired that you rest" Billie told her, suddenly feeling as though she was Nina's mother sending her off to school for the first time.

"Thanks Billie, I have no idea how I'm going to handle work, but I will make sure I try to ensure I eat and rest enough, I have no intentions of doing anything that might cause me to miscarry" Nina said knowing that was one of the fears all three of them had, that they might lose the baby which was the only positive in this scenario for the moment.

"I know Neens, I wish you'd told Cherie, she'd watch over you like a mother hen, that would make me feel a little bit better" Billie said knowing that Nina would most likely tell all of her colleagues once she was past the first trimester, if she managed to be able to keep it a secret until then.

"I want to wait until I pass the first trimester, I know it sounds silly but unless anyone guesses, that's what I'd like" Nina said as she tucked into her breakfast and all conversation stopped for a few minutes. She was almost finished when they heard her front door open and she wasn't sure whether to feel happy or not that Mick was here. He'd been around a lot, due to Billie and also due to the baby, and most of the time she was happy to see him, but there was a part of her that wanted some space from him, some time to not have to think of the fact that he was this baby's father. She knew it was selfish, but every time she thought of him as the baby's father a feeling would well up inside of her that she had no intentions of acknowledging, not now or in the future.

"Hey Neens, Billie" Mick said as he walked into the room with a bunch of flowers in his hand. He'd seen them on his way to Nina's and thought she'd like them, he wanted to do something to celebrate her return to work and thought this was a safe way to express that.

"These are for you Neens to celebrate you going back to work" Mick said shyly as he handed her the flowers doing his best not to look at Billie. He didn't know why but after he'd bought them he felt that she might have an issue with him giving the woman he'd impregnated flowers. He looked over at her cautiously and couldn't see any anger or hurt on her face and was relieved. He didn't want to upset Billie, but he didn't want to stop doing things for Nina either to cheer her up or make her happy or take care of her. He'd become very protective of Nina since he'd learnt of her pregnancy and that he was the father of the baby, he was sure it was some sort of primal instinct but he knew his relationship with Nina was changing, how could it not, they were becoming parents.

"Thank you Mick, I'll put them in some water" Nina said as she got up to take the flowers and went into the kitchen to find a vase leaving Billie and Mick together, sensing some tension between them. The last thing she wanted was to be the cause of any tension between them.

"That was nice Mick, I think Neens needed it, she's a bit nervous about going back to work" Billie said trying not to be concerned by Mick bringing Nina flowers. She knew it was an innocent gesture and not meant to be anything but what he'd intended and she was determined to not try and read anything else into anything Mick did for Nina.

"I should get dressed I need to be at work soon" Nina said as she went to walk into her bedroom to shower and get changed. She looked over at Mick and Billie and saw how close they were standing to each other and her earlier worries faded. She found herself doing that a lot, watching them for any possible signs of difficulties between them, she was still so scared that this baby was going to come between Mick and Billie and she never wanted to be responsible for her sister's unhappiness.

As she picked out her clothes, part of her smiled as her favourite pair of jeans were a little tighter than normal. She'd begun to notice the changes in her body more now and although her stomach was as flat as it normally was she could feel a difference when she laid her hand against it. It was firmer than usual and the thought that her baby rested inside there left her feeling awed every time she felt it.

_Okay leaving it there because the next chapter will deal with Nina's return to work. What do you think, who will figure things out before Nina makes an announcement and who will be the one to tell her Chris has left? Thanks again for reading._


	7. Chapter 7

**A Mess of her Own Making**

**Chapter 7**

Nina walked into work and headed straight for the change room to put her bag down and have a few moments to herself before she headed to the front desk to see what was in store for her today. She was looking forward to seeing her friends, but was also nervous because they were all very good midwives and she knew that despite her desire to tell them once she was past the first trimester, there was a very good chance one of them would figure it out before then.

She knew it wasn't going to be particularly easy working and trying to battle through the fatigue that often crept up on her without warning, but her job was important to her and she would do all she could to ensure that she was able to continue being an obstetrician and a mother.

Once she was sure she was ready to face the others she walked out of the change room with her pass hanging around her neck, trying not to play with it as it was a clear sign she was anxious and approached the front desk.

"Nina, you're back thank God" Cherie said as she walked up to Nina and embraced her. She'd missed her friend terribly and with her current confusion about her relationship with Sam she really needed her friend to be able to talk through her feelings about him.

"Thanks Cherie, I'm glad to be back" Nina said, hoping not too many questions would be asked, she was not the best liar and she knew she was going to need to be evasive about her reasons for returning to St Francis.

"Nina, you look terrible everything okay?" Kim asked as she observed Nina taking in her paler than usual features and a bit of puffiness around her eyes. She was very curious about why Nina was back from Baltimore, had a feeling that she just couldn't be away from her family for that long a period. As much as she loved Neens, she had hoped that this break away from her family would help Nina not be as involved with her family as before.

"Yes, I've just found it a bit hard to get used to being back here. It was much colder in Baltimore" Nina said hoping that would satisfy Kim's curiosity.

"Hmm well welcome back" Kim said not totally buying Nina's explanation but resolved to observe her a little before making her determination about what was wrong with Nina.

"Thank you, I'm anxious to get back into work, any patients for me to see?" Nina asked, thinking that if she turned the conversation back to work that she might be able to escape the inquisition she could see Kim priming for.

"Nina, welcome back, Martin told us you'd come back from Baltimore early" Zara said as she walked up to the front desk. She'd been looking for Nina's replacement, as one of the mother's they had in the delivery suite was getting close to delivery, but couldn't find him anywhere.

"Thanks Zara, now are there any patients I can be seeing?" Nina asked once again trying to bring the conversation back to work, she could see that Zara was very curious about her reasons for returning back to work and she knew she'd find it harder to lie to Zara than any of them.

"Here Nina, but we will talk later" Zara said as she handed Nina some files. Nina watched warily as Zara walked over to the desk and decided she better get out of there while she still could.

A couple of hours later and Nina decided she really needed a break so she headed out to the balcony with a cup of tea and one of the sandwiches Billie had made her. She was so lost in thought she didn't hear anyone approaching the chairs she was sitting in.

"Nina, I know you and I have never really gotten along, but if you need someone to talk to, I am happy to listen" Zara said as she sat down next to Nina. She wasn't sure if anyone had told Nina about Chris, but decided it was probably best if she broached the subject with her.

"Thank you Zara, but at the moment I am barely managing this situation myself, and I'm afraid that if I talk to someone about it I'll break down" Nina told Zara, knowing she was giving away something by telling Zara that, but she just needed time to get her head around this before she told everyone.

"I understand, um Nina has anyone told you about Chris?" Zara asked, not wanting to upset Nina further but she felt Nina deserved to know.

"What about Chris?" Nina asked, having a feeling she knew what Zara was going to tell her, but not really caring any more. Yes she'd had strong feelings for Chris, but she'd come to understand that things between them would never have worked and she was beginning to get over him.

"He left for Brisbane with Alice last week, Alice got a job in Brisbane and he decided to follow" Zara told Nina watching her face as she relayed the information.

"I had a feeling that would happen, when I didn't see him around the hospital, I had suspected he left, but it would have been nice if he'd told me himself" Nina said taking a bite from her sandwich and relishing the taste. It was wonderful to eat something that didn't make her feel sick.

"You're taking the news well, I thought you might be more upset" Zara said watching Nina take a sip of her tea, thinking she could detect a hint of ginger in the tea. Her thoughts about what could be wrong with Nina spiralled and she was more curious than ever, but she resolved she would wait until Nina told them all. She liked Nina, even if she was a bit scatterbrained sometimes and hopeless with men, she really wished they had a closer relationship.

"I accepted before I went to Baltimore that Chris and I weren't going to make it as a couple, I'd sorted everything in my life to ensure I could be with him freely without my past messing things up and he couldn't let Alice go, it is what it is and now, well lets just say my life is complicated enough as it is without involving Chris" Nina said knowing she was giving more away to Zara, but not really feeling ready to open up to her as yet.

"Nina?" Kim said as she opened up the door to the balcony.

"We need you" Kim told her and looked at Zara meaningfully as Nina got up finishing her sandwich and taking the last drink of her tea.

The rest of the day passed with a couple of caesareans and one fairly difficult birth which drained Nina both emotionally and physically. By the time she arrived home she was exhausted and as much as she wanted to fall into bed and sleep the night away she knew she needed to eat something. She looked around for Billie and smiled as she looked in the fridge and found a note from Billie on top of a meal Billie had obviously prepared for her earlier in the day.

"_Neens this stir fry has ginger in it and lots of fresh veggies which should hopefully go down a treat, Mick and I are out to dinner and will probably be back late. Sleep well and hope your first day back at work went well. Love Billie"_

Nina smiled as she warmed up her dinner, relishing the calm of being home by herself. Although she was tired she was happy that she was feeling less nauseous than she had in the past few weeks and she was hopeful that the last couple of weeks of her first trimester would be a lot easier.

She ate dinner slowly, savouring every mouthful and then once she was finished she got ready for bed, she decided to have a nice bath in order to relax herself after a stressful day and relax her muscles. As she undressed she looked again at herself in the mirror knowing that she wouldn't be able to see any signs of her pregnancy but she couldn't help but check for any signs of the life within her.

When she was completely relaxed from the bath she bundled herself up in her comfiest pj's and laid down in bed. It was only when she was lying down that she could feel any sign that she was pregnant. Her abdomen was firmer than normal and if she pressed down a little she could feel signs that her uterus had enlarged to accommodate the growing embryo. She couldn't wait until she could feel the baby moving within her, then it would feel real.

The next couple of weeks went the same way, with Nina working, doing her best to rest when she needed and eat as well as she could. The nausea persisted for a while and then began to taper off the closer she got to the end of the first trimester.

She managed to dodge the concern of her colleagues and keep their queries at bay until she passed her first trimester. She was sure that Cherie would have guessed it by now, but her concerns over her relationship with Sam seemed to keep her powers of detecting pregnancy at bay. They spent a few lunches together dissecting Cherie and Sam's relationship trying to figure out why Cherie felt so off about it, but as yet had not come to a conclusion that satisfied Cherie. Nina knew what it was, Cherie and Sam had reached the stage that Cherie always baulked at and as much as she wanted to tell her friend that, she knew that Cherie would find a way to dismiss her view on the matter.

Billie continued to be supportive, but there were times that Nina could sense it was getting too much for her. Nina's clothes were beginning to get tight on her and she had needed to buy a few pairs of pants to get her through the next month or so before resorting to maternity wear. Although Billie came with her willingly to shop for new pants, she could see that she was struggling with the reasons and the fact that the pregnancy was becoming more real. The healthier Nina felt and the less she needed Billie, the more Billie seemed to distance herself from her. She was sure that once she began showing Billie would finally have the reaction to the pregnancy that she was expecting.

She finally got around to finding an obstetrician for the pregnancy and found she was very excited about the coming ultrasound she needed to have at the 12 week mark. She wanted to see how much the baby had changed and see if it would feel more real, being able to see the baby on an ultrasound screen. She was also nervous because she knew that any possible problems with the pregnancy would become apparent during the ultrasound and she couldn't bear thinking that something could be wrong with the baby.

She'd discussed with Billie and Mick and she felt that it would easiest for both herself and Mick if they attended her appointments together, to separate their relationship into expectant parents, but only that. She felt if Billie was included then it would make it too complicated. She and Mick needed to have a relationship outside of his relationship with Billie, and as much as it pained her to admit, she didn't want Billie involved, because she didn't want Billie feeling like this would be her child also. She knew that they would all have to sit down soon and decide how involved Mick was going to be in this baby's life and what it would mean for them all, but for now she wanted to just try and keep things as simple as possible.

_Okay going to leave things there as I want to tackle the 12 week scan and other things in the next chapter. I know we need to sort Geraldine's reaction to the baby and bring Jimmy back eventually, but for now onto the 12 week scan and everyone's reactions._


	8. Chapter 8

**A Mess of her Own Making**

**Chapter 8**

"Nina?" Jimmy said loudly he was having trouble hearing things in the noisy airport he was in.

"Jim is that you?" Nina said straining to hear him also.

"Yeah Neens, sorry its so loud, I've only got ten minutes till my flight gets called but I wanted to call you and let you know I'm coming home and I'm not coming home alone I need you to break it to the family" Jimmy said really hating to put his sister on the spot but when his mother found out what he'd done she was likely to strangle him.

"Sure Jim but what are you worried about we all kind of expected you to come home with a girl" Nina asked worriedly, she had a feeling there was more to this than she was expecting.

"I kind of got married" Jimmy said and then could only hear silence on the other end of the line.

"Neens you there?" Jimmy asked looking at his phone to make sure he didn't get cut off.

"Yes" came Nina's strangled reply. Just when she thought her life was already complicated enough Jimmy had to complicate it even further.

"Sorry to spring it on you Neens, but do you think you could spring it on the family? I'll be home in a couple of days" Jimmy asked knowing he was asking a lot of Nina and from the conversations he'd had with Mick lately he hated to ask this of her but he knew she was the best at breaking difficult news to people. Something to do with doctor training or something.

"My God Jim, I can't believe you got married, Mum is going to kill you" Nina said still in shock at what her brother had just confessed.

"I know and I know you'll all have objections but this girl, she's the one Neens, I've got to go they are calling my flight love you Neens" Jimmy said and hung up before Nina could say anything else.

Nina dropped the phone in her hand and sat down on the lounge heavily her mind still reeling from what Jimmy had just told her. She sat there staring into space trying to comprehend how her brother had ever thought to marry someone.

"Neens you ok?" Mick rushed over to her worried, she looked spaced out and he was worried something might be wrong with the baby.

"Jimmy" was all she could get out. Her hand subconsciously went to her stomach needing to draw strength from the one good thing that was happening in her life.

"Ah yes, I'm sorry Neens he made me promise not to tell anyone" Mick said breathing a sigh of relief that it was just Jimmy and his antics. Despite Jimmy's declarations of love and the marriage Mick was unsure if this girl really was the right one for Jimmy or if Jimmy was really ready for the responsibilities of marriage.

"It's okay Mick, it just took me by surprise that's all" Nina said feeling a bit better now that she'd had time to absorb the information. She knew it was going to be difficult to raise this subject but it might help with taking the focus off her own difficult situation.

"How long have you known?" Nina asked knowing she shouldn't feel miffed that Jimmy had confided in Mick first, but still feeling a bit put out.

"Only a few days, any more and I would have confessed it, you know what your sister and your mother are like, any time they hear that I've talked to Jimmy I get the Spanish inquisition" Mick said and they both laughed heartily, both knowing it was the truth. They were unaware they were being watched by Billie, who tried very hard not to read anything into the two of them laughing together. Watching them Billie was sure that they were sitting closer than they normally sit and Mick's hand was resting close to Nina's thigh. She shook her head trying to remind herself that through necessity, Nina and Mick had become closer, but she knew neither of them would ever do anything to hurt her.

She watched a few moments more and then walked out the front door on her way to work unaware that she'd been caught by Nina who watched her silently, worried by the fact that Billie had once again meant to walk in the room where she was and had not. She and Mick worked diligently on making sure their relationship not only didn't cross any friendship boundaries, but that their new closeness couldn't be interpreted as anything else than friendship.

She kept it to herself that Billie had been watching them not wanting to add any more drama to this situation and excused herself to go and get dressed for work. She decided to wear a shirt that flowed freely over her stomach and her new stretchy maternity pants to make it easier to pull them down for the ultrasound later today. Mick was picking her up from work and then the three of them were going out to dinner together to celebrate the official end of her first trimester.

She tried hard to concentrate all through work but all she could think about was the ultrasound and whether the baby really was going to be okay. She knew it was normal to worry and she assured all the mothers she treated of the same thing, that it was normal to have dreams there was something wrong with the baby, it was normal to worry and remind them that ultrasounds were there to help assure them things were progressing normally.

She was so distracted that Cherie, Kim and Zara all noticed and corned her in her office not long before Mick was due to pick her up.

"Ok this has gone on long enough Nina, what is going on?" Cherie asked hoping her friend would confide in them easier if she were the one to start the conversation, as much as Nina liked both Kim and Zara, their brutal honesty was more likely to scare off Nina at this moment.

"I don't really have time to talk I have an appointment soon and I need to finish this paperwork before I go" Nina said hoping if she stated it strongly enough and looked busy enough they might leave her alone.

"Neens we care about you, don't think we haven't noticed how distracted you were today, and how oddly you've behaved ever since you got back, we all have our suspicions but really Neens you need to fess up and get it off your chest" Kim said hoping she hadn't said that too harshly, she really wanted to know what was going on so she could support Nina in whatever way she could.

Sensing that she wasn't going to get away without saying something Nina sat and thought about how she could word what she knew she needed to tell them. She was thinking so hard she didn't hear her phone ring.

"Dr Nina Proudman's phone" Kim answered grabbing the phone before anyone else could. She nodded a couple of times and then her eyes went wide as she saw Mick walking towards Nina's office. The phone dropped from her hand as everything fell into place and she couldn't help but stand there open mouthed, she was struck speechless by what she had just come to realise.

"Kim, who was that?" Nina asked trying to gauge what Kim had learned and how much damage control she was going to have to perform.

"It was your obstetrician's office ringing to let you know your doctor was running half an hour late" Kim said woodenly her heart going out to Nina, but unable to do more than relay information.

"God Nina, you're pregnant?" Cherie asked shocked also and looked up as Mick entered the room, realisations also setting in for her as she looked back and forth between Mick and Nina and then at Zara who just looked satisfied with having something confirmed to her.

"Yes, and yes Mick is the father" Nina said knowing that they had all guessed and there was nothing to do except confess.

"How far along are you?" Cherie asked trying to do the maths in her head but struggling.

"I've just gone passed the first trimester, today is my first official ultrasound" Nina said deliberately not using we've or we in her sentences about her pregnancy. She wanted them all to know that she was going to be a single parent and Mick was going to be involved. There was no relationship between them except friendship.

"Congratulations Nina, I know the situation can't be easy for you, but I know you are going to be a great mum" Zara said shocking Nina as she came up and hugged her. Cherie and Kim soon joined Zara in the hugging and they all laughed as Kim put her arms around the three of them.

"Thank you, it isn't any easy situation, we're just doing our best to make the best of it" Nina said motioning Mick into the room feeling the strange urge to take his hand.

"Yes I'm behind Nina all the way on this, and so is Billie" Mick said hoping that the last part was true, they were all still waiting for the reaction they'd expected Billie to have to happen and hoped it wouldn't end up destroying any relationships in the process.

"Congratulations Mick, you had better take care of her, she tends to get a little too focused on work and family, you need to make sure she looks after herself and gets the rest she needs" Cherie said hugging him and letting out her mother instincts. She had a feeling this situation was going to come to ahead at some point and she hoped they'd all be able to rally around Nina when it did.

"I will, Nina and this baby are very important to me, as is Billie, neither Nina or I want anyone to get hurt in this" Mick said looking over at Nina and wanting to take her hand to reassure her. He thought Nina was an incredible person for the way she'd been handling this situation and it only made him admire her more. His son or daughter couldn't have done better for a mother and despite the complicated nature of this situation he couldn't be happier that she was going to have his child.

"Yes, I couldn't stand it if this situation caused me to lose my relationship with Billie" Nina said trying not to tear up at the thought, her emotions were closer to the surface now that she was pregnant and had all the hormones surging through her body.

"Well no matter what happens you're having a baby!" Cherie said excitedly wanting to focus on the positive in this situation and wanted to make sure Nina felt as excited as she should about this baby no matter who their father was.

"Yes I am, I can't wait" Nina said as she looked over and caught Mick's eye, and they shared a smile that caused a feeling of something Nina couldn't define to come over her. She ducked her head before she could analyse the feeling and decided they needed to leave for her appointment even if it meant they would be early.

"Well we should get going, I will make sure I get a picture to show you all" Nina said taking Mick's hand and leading him out of the office.

"Wow" Kim said as they all watched them leave. She looked over at Zara and Cherie and could see they were all thinking the same thing.

"Let's hope this situation develops the way Nina wants it to, I couldn't stand for her to get hurt in this" Cherie said sadly, having not missed the look between Nina and Mick. She could feel the bond they were beginning to form and was concerned that jealousy on Billie's part was going to destroy a relationship that Cherie had always envied. Despite their differences Cherie knew that Nina and Billie's relationship was a strong one and she envied their closeness.

"You ok?" Mick said once they were settled in the Ute. They'd decided to take his car so he could drive her back to the hospital later.

"Yeah, I just wasn't expecting things to come out today, I'd hoped to have a little more time" Nina said sighing and relaxing back into the seat. Although some parts of the conversation had stressed her, mostly she was just relieved that it was all out in the open. The only person not in the know now was Jimmy who had an even bigger secret to reveal.

"Well if it's any consolation I think you handled it brilliantly, as you have this situation from day one Nina, I really admire that about you" Mick said trying not to think of that last moment in her office when they'd smiled at each other.

"Thank you Mick, I feel the same about you, I couldn't ask for a better man for my sister" Nina said deliberately bringing the conversation to Billie, she didn't want to think about how she'd felt in her office when she'd looked at Mick.

"Thank you Nina" Mick said wanting to reach over for her hand but kept his hands on the steering wheel grateful that he was driving. What they were about to do, seeing their child for the first time felt like such an intimate situation it was hard not to approach it the way he would if Nina had been Billie. It felt strange to be entering into an obstetrician's office as parents of an unborn child as separate people and although he knew it was the way things had to be, it wasn't the first time that deep down he didn't wish things were different.

They walked into the obstetrician's office together Mick holding the door open for Nina, and putting his hand at her back to guide her into the room, it was an unconscious action and neither of them questioned it. As they sat waiting for Nina's name to be called they discussed their days and Nina was relaying a particularly funny situation with a birth when her name was finally called.

They went through the usual process that happened at the start of an antenatal appointment, with a midwife taking her measurements and getting her to pee in a cup to test for protein in her urine. Once they were in her obstetrician's office her doctor went through her results of the test and asked her how she was feeling now that she was passed the first trimester. Then she was asked to lie down on the bed next to the wall where an ultrasound machine was set up and the nerves really began to kick in. She pulled down her pants until they were just above her pubic area and pulled her shirt up and tried not to squirm at the cold feeling of the gel being applied to her abdomen.

"Alright, Nina, Mick are you both ready to see your child?" Nina's doctor asked. She was an older woman probably in her late forties with chocolate brown hair and a fullish face. Her face was kind and gentle and her eyes sparkled when she smiled. Nina had liked her from the first moment she'd met her. She made her feel comfortable and safe, and hadn't objected at all when Nina had told her that she was an obstetrician herself.

"Yes" Nina and Mick replied in unison and Mick didn't stop himself from taking Nina's hand, in this moment they were together, they were the parents of this baby they were about to see and he didn't believe it was inappropriate to hold her hand.

"Ok, here we go Nina can you see, that is your baby" The doctor said as a whooshing sound filled the room, Nina knowing immediately that it was the baby's healthy sounding heartbeat. Tears filled her eyes as she stared at the screen, her eyes glued to the form of her child before her. She made out a head, a hand and legs kicking, and a part of her wished she could feel the movements she could see on the screen before her.

"Everything looks very healthy Nina, I'll just take some measurements and then I will leave you and Mick to just gaze at your child for a little bit I know you know how to use this" Her doctor told them indicating the ultrasound wand in her hand. She knew the specifics of this case, Nina had told her during their first visit, both Mick and Nina wanting to be honest about their situation to make it easier, so there was never any confusion that they were a couple.

"Thank you Dr Wright" Nina said unable to take her eyes away from the screen in front of her. She finally remembered Mick was next to her and squeezing her hand his eyes glued to the same place hers had just been. Seeing the tears in his eyes only made her tear up even more and she didn't think she could feel closer to another person than she felt to Mick in this very moment and squeezed his hand back.

"Ok Nina, everything is measuring how we want it, you are definitely 12 weeks and two days, and the baby looks very healthy, no abnormalities that I can see, I'll still get you in for another ultrasound at twenty weeks so we can ensure the baby is still developing normally and we can talk about whether you both want to know the sex, congratulations I'll leave you to it" Dr Wright said as she walked out of the room smiling at the two of them both in love with the sight of their child. She knew that no matter their situation this child would be loved and that was the most important thing.

"So you can really use that thing?" Mick said as he pulled his eyes away from the sight of their child.

"Yes, of course I can it's what I do, here" Nina said as she grabbed Mick's hand and guided it to the ultrasound wand and wrapped his hand around hers. She moved the wand around trying to see if she could get a different profile of the baby and smiled as the baby moved on the screen in front of them. Once she was happy with what she could see they just sat there for a few minutes watching their child move on the screen in front of them, listening to the baby's heart beat filling the room around them. Nina felt like the rest of the world faded out and it was just the three of them existing together in on perfect moment.

Nina felt Mick press a kiss to her hair and the spell was broken as she abruptly moved away from him getting up and wiping the gel off her stomach before adjusting her clothes. She cursed herself for the feelings coursing through her at the moment and tried very hard to calm herself.

"I'm sorry Nina if that was too much, I don't know what came over me" Mick said guilt colouring his features as he thought of what he just did. It had felt so right and natural and he'd just gone with the moment.

"It's okay Mick I just think we should get going, I'm going to go ask Dr Wright for a copy of the ultrasound for us both as I know she took a couple of pictures it's standard" Nina said as she left the room trying not to be abrupt with him. _God it was just a kiss to the hair Nina, don't read so much into it_ she thought. No matter how right it felt intimacies like that could only lead to bad things, especially when her second trimester hormones hit. She knew that was when things would get really hairy for them.

Once they arrived Nina went to go and have a nap to prepare for their night out. Although she still felt a lot better than she had in the worst of her morning sickness, she was still recovering from it and she knew in a week or two all her energy would return with gusto. She fell asleep clutching the picture of the ultrasound and her other hand wrapped around her middle as though she was holding the child within. Mick peeked in on her before Billie got home and thought it was the cutest thing he'd ever seen.

Mick walked into Nina's lounge room knowing he'd soon have to go and pick up Billie from work and both of them get ready for dinner tonight. He also knew that in a few short days Jimmy would be home from the Amazon or wherever he'd been and things were going to get crazy. He took the time to think about the day and his feelings and convinced himself that what he'd felt was just the same as any other expectant father felt about the mother of his child. It was nothing else. It couldn't be.

_Ok phew that was a longer one. So I really want things to progress slowly for Nina and Mick, it has been my goal from day one of this story for them to end up together. The trick being to have it happen and not rip apart a family. So baby steps. Hope it is believable. Anyway next up: Jimmy returns home, but before that Nina needs to break it to Geraldine that Jimmy is married. Wowser!_


End file.
